


Break Free

by orphan_account



Series: BF'verse [1]
Category: Broadchurch, Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-30
Updated: 2015-05-04
Packaged: 2018-03-20 11:55:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 29,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3649434
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rose never makes it over to her original universe. After Torchwood shuts down the Dimension Cannon, strange disappearances start to occur in the small town of Broadchurch. Rose volunteers on the case in hopes of getting away from the memories of the Doctor, but is in for a big surprise.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Rose sighed as she drove along the Dorset coast, heading toward the Broadchurch hotel – Trader’s, she thought it was called – Pete had set up. There was a small reading right in the center of the town, nothing too crucial. A bit of an energy flux, perhaps a glimpse of a rift – nothing big enough to cause a moderate to severe level of catastrophe, but enough to jumpstart local folklore. 

Torchwood looked into it briefly, performing a background check on the area to rule out major threats. If this were the only factor, no one would have even bothered to go up to the area. What has everyone worried area the mysterious disappearances of seemingly random residents. Cue Rose. 

She had been working with the dimension canon for years, and the farthest she had gotten was the void. Once the stars started returning, it was mostly Rose that worked on the project, usually with only Mickey’s help. At that point, she was the only one that had something to lose. Months later, Torchwood shut down the project completely, deciding that ripping fabrics in reality wasn’t worth the sliver of hope of getting back to the other universe. 

This was one year ago. Afterward, Rose threw herself into her work, becoming more and more reckless on missions; they got to the point where Pete stuck her on desk duty. Being behind the desk only gave her time with her thoughts, so when, about a year after the matter, the disappearances started in Broadchurch, she jumped on the chance. 

She pulled into Trader’s parking lot, and got out her luggage from the trunk of her sleek black Torchwood-funded SUV once parked. She checked in quickly and went up to her room, not bothering to unpack her things into the wooden dresser that a box television sat on top of. She wasn’t sure how long she would be here and she had to get over to the Broadchurch Police Station as soon as possible. She would have preferred to have an opportunity to shower after the drive, but settled for just taking one after the meeting. 

Rose sighed and grabbed her purse again, heading out the door.

oooo

The drive was thankfully short, considering how small of a town it was. 

She made her way through the doors, stopping at the front desk. “I’m Agent Tyler, sent from Torchwood. I was told I would be meeting with the DI today?”

The woman glanced down at a sheet. “You can go on and head back there, DS Miller will show you to his office,” she said, while pointing in the direction of a single door. 

Rose nodded her thanks, though the woman had already placed her attention elsewhere, and headed through the door. The precinct was on the smaller side, which wasn’t too surprising. She only had a moment to size up before a woman with dark curly hair was in her line of vision, a friendly smile on her face. “Hello, you must be Agent Tyler.” She held her hand out for Rose to shake.

Rose took the hand and gave it one firm shake, returning the smile. “That’s me. DS Miller, then?” 

She nodded. “You can just call me Ellie, though.” 

“You can call me Rose, then.”

She smiled, and then glanced over her shoulder. “I’ll go ahead and take you to DI Hardy’s office.” She motioned for her to follow as she began walking. “Fair warning, he’s a bit of a grump. Don’t take it personally; he’s like that with everyone.”

Rose had fair share of grumpy coworkers on her hand at Torchwood, so she wasn’t too worried. The Doctor had done a good job of hardening her up on their travels, as well, with the different types of beings they ran into. “I’ve dealt with that sort of stuff before.”

The door to the office was shut and the blinds were closed. Ellie knocked on the door quickly and then peeked in. Her words were muffled as she spoke, and a moment later she opened the door all the way and ushered for Rose to go inside.

She smiled in gratitude and stepped through, then turned to the man. 

Her eyes widened and her breaths became short and irregular, and she was sure her heart had all but stopped at the sight before her. “Doctor?”

The DI, or perhaps the Doctor, raised an eyebrow in reply. “No, Detective Inspector. Says it right on the door.” 

Rose’s eyes dulled for a moment, and then she used all her willpower and training to reign in her emotions, leaving her face blank. This man wasn’t the Doctor. The Scottish accent was only mild proof, but she could already tell by his demeanor that the man’s personality was a 180 from his. She felt a flash of anger at her dad; didn’t he do any background checks on the people she would be working with? Did he know?

She blinked a few times and focused on the Detective Inspector, ignoring her racing heart. “Um, I’m Agent Tyler. They sent me from Torchwood about the disappearances.” She had already prepared herself for an onslaught on questions regarding Torchwood. Any in-depth knowledge was not widely known outside of the employees, and if it were her, she would want to know who she would be working with. After the shock to her system though, she wasn’t sure how well she’d fare. 

DI Hardy frowned and crossed his arms, not bothering to get up from his chair. “Don’t see what bloody outside resources are needed for,” he muttered under his breath. “They sent you here, but didn’t bother telling me what you’re even for.” 

Rose nodded and let out a long sigh. She had to keep the information brief. The only reason she would need to give a more in-depth explanation is if she indeed found any alien activity in relation to the case. “Torchwood is a government-funded organization dealing with unique threats. There is suspicion that these disappearances may be of special circumstances, which is where I come in.” 

“What kind of unique threats are we talking about?”

She shook her head once. “That’s classified. I’m here to scope the area and validate our suspicions, and if that happens, then we’ll talk more. Now, how about you brief me on the case.” She kept her gaze level with his. She’d dealt with the look of the Oncoming Storm; this man’s glare was nothing. 

Eventually, he grunted and his frown deepened as he swiveled over to a manila folder. Rose took a seat and looked down as he opened it up. Now, she couldn’t bring herself to look at him any longer than necessary. “We’ve had a total of six disappearances in the span of six months. They seemed to have vanished in thin air; no trails or leads have been found.”

She braved a glance at him, then looked back to the papers inside the folder. She read them over carefully. “Not even in the same areas?”

“What does it look like?”

She sent a glare his way and placed the paper back on his desk. “Can I get a copy of these? I’m going to brief my team later and I’ll need the details.”

He grunted again and grabbed the folder. He craned his neck to call out the door. “Miller, get some copies made up of this case!”

Ellie walked into his office seconds later, rolling her eyes. “I’m your DS, not your secretary.”

“That’s I’m your DS, sir.”

oooo

Once Rose got back to the hotel, she rushed straight for the bathroom and turned on the shower, peeling her clothes off and sliding under the water. Now that she was alone, she allowed herself to give in to her feelings. Every thought was right back on the Doctor. How was she supposed to focus on this case with DI Hardy working beside her? She left London to get away from the memories, but instead managed to find herself in an even worse predicament. 

Tears streamed down her face, washing her grief down the drain with the water.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose briefs Ellie and Alec on Torchwood and the case.

Early the next morning, Rose was scouting the area of the reading, Torchwood gear in place. She had to close a larger area off than necessary to keep prying eyes away, and the solitude of the beach was a nice change from London. When she called Torchwood the night before, she found it best to keep the DI’s appearance to herself, afraid that she’d be forced off the case. She was Rose Tyler, defender of the Earth. She could take care of herself.

“All right, let’s see what we’ve got,” Rose murmured as she turned on the small handheld device in her hand. It hummed to life and showed a series of different colored lines, jumping at different points. She quietly cursed to herself and grabbed her phone from her pocket.

“Agent Tyler.” She recognized the voice of Pete on the other line.

She began to walk around slowly, the phone cradled between her should and ear. “Are you sure the readings came back as a 3? I’m getting upwards of 6 out here.”

“That’s what you’re there for, Rose. Do you feel the need to clear Broadchurch PD?”

“Do you?” 

“You have the readings. I’m giving you permission, so the choice is yours.”

Rose sighed and ended the call, looking down at the readings again. They stayed at a steady point, no matter where she walked. The readings were high and she knew she had to brief the DI and DS. Explaining what Torchwood does was never one of her favorite jobs, but she was often given the duty after having experience with such things with the Doctor. She snorted; he never really was the one to do the explaining, just scaring poor passersby half to death. 

Another couple of hours were spent recording different readings and possible locations of the rift, and then she headed back up the beach to go to the station.

oooo

She made it through the office without much of a glance. 

Ellie looked up and offered a smile. “Rose, good to see you. You said you need to do some briefing?”

She nodded and smiled back. “Yeah, but only with you and the DI, if that’s all right. We can’t have the whole station knowing all the details.”

Ellie looked at her in confusion, but led her to the DI’s office without another word. Both women went inside without a knock.

Alec sighed, giving them reproachful looks. “What have I said about knocking, Miller.”

“You knew she was on her way over, so I didn’t see the point, Alec.”

He shot her an irritated look before getting up to move to the front of his desk. He crossed his arms and leaned against the edge, his attention focused on Rose. “What’ve you found?”

Rose still found it hard to look at him, but fought through it. She was going to be here a lot longer than she first thought, so she had no choice. It could be considered a good mental exercise. “First, I need to give both you and Ellie a bit of Torchwood background. The Director is already on the phone with your Super, doing the same.” She motioned for both to take seats again. Ellie moved over to one of the chairs against the glass window, but Alec stayed standing.

Rose fought to not roll her eyes, instead shutting the door firmly. “What I’m about to tell you might make you think I’m a right nutter, fair warning.” She glanced between the two. Ellie’s curiosity was noticeable, but the DI gave nothing away. 

She took a deep breath and began. She told them about the aliens they had dealt with and other instances that, if someone were to walk by, might have her sectioned. She kept close tabs of their reactions the whole time, thankful that neither interrupted her. She was careful to not give away any personal stories, especially nothing that contained the Doctor or the other universe.

When she was finished, a heavy silence hung in the air. Alec soon snorted and looked at her through skeptical eyes. “You expect us to believe this…this fairytale of yours. Aliens?” He shook his head and moved back behind his desk, taking a seat. 

“Want to get on the phone with my Director? I’d be more than happy.” Rose didn’t know why she felt so irritated by his non-belief. She’s run into plenty like him, more often than not. Perhaps because this man that wore the Doctor’s face was practically scoffing at everything the Doctor encompassed.

“Aye.”

She nodded once and pulled out her phone and dialed Pete’s number, handing the phone over to Alec. Once they began speaking, she turned to Ellie. “How about you? Think I need to be sectioned?” She cracked a small smile.

Ellie took a deep breath, then slowly shook her head. “It all sounds crazy, you have to admit.” The corner of her lips turned up. “But I think it’s nice to believe every now and again. Besides, you don’t seem crazy.” She smirked.

Rose laughed. “You’d be surprised.” 

A loud sigh came from Alec, causing both of them to turn to him. He held out the phone for Rose to take, and then logged onto his computer. “He’s sending ‘proof’, apparently.” His voice was so low that she wasn’t sure if it was meant for her or not. 

Ellie slowly moved over to lean over him and look for herself. “What the bloody hell is that?” 

Rose smiled and watched the two reactions, both very different.

Alec ran a hand over his face and leaned back in his chair. “So why are you here exactly?”

Rose took this to mean he believed her and moved on. “I was first assigned here to look at readings that are near the location of the first disappearance. Back at Torchwood, they told me they were low readings. I only expected to check it out, see if there was any indication of fowl play, and then move on. But,” she pulled a manila folder out of her bag and handed it over to the DI, “when I tested it myself, the readings were higher than a 6 – usually, we brief local police if it’s at least a 5.” 

“What exactly does that mean?” Alec put on his reading glasses and looked the pictures over, giving each to Ellie after he looked them over.

“The numbers signify chance of alien interaction. If it’s anything higher than a five, there is a better chance of it happening than not. Now, there are also readings of a small rift – pretty much energy resulting from a tear in the fabric of space – which I wasn’t able to pinpoint. It’s very small, so I don’t think we have to worry too often, but it could have something to do with the disappearances.” 

Alec nodded, still looking down at the report. “So, where do we go from here?”

oooo

After a little more discussing and, on Alec’s part, grumbling, Rose felt satisfied for the day. They had all planned to start looking into the disappearances more tomorrow, now that they had a fresh perspective. 

“Rose!”

Rose turned to see Ellie making her way over to her. She subtly raised her eyebrows; she liked Ellie, and she hoped they could become friends during her time here.

“I just want to apologize for Hardy. He can be a bit of a…”

“All ‘round git?”

Ellie laughed. “Yeah, you can put it that way. Just…don’t let it get to you. Oh! Would you like to come over for dinner tomorrow night? It’s gotta get lonely up in that hotel room of yours.”

Rose smiled. “I’d like that, thanks. See you tomorrow.” 

oooo

Once back in her room, Rose called Torchwood. “Just letting you know that we finished with briefing. We’re going to start bright and early on the disappearances tomorrow. I’ve set up feeds around the beach, too, that read right back here. I’ll let you know if anything changes.”

The rest of the conversation was short, moving on to pleasantries, and then she made her way over to her laptop. Still no changes. She sighed and pick up her phone again.

“Rose! How’re you like that town there, sweetheart? A bit quaint, innit? Oh, Tony wants to say hi!”

Rose couldn’t help but giggle. She missed her mother dearly. A small voice greeted her and she grinned. “Hey Tone, you taking care of mum?”

“Yep! Mummy says she misses you. I miss you, too.”

“Oi, I’ve only been gone a day. Promise I won’t be gone too long, all right?”

“’Kay. Here’s mummy.”

She talked to her mother a little about what was going on and Jackie updated her on her latest gossip from the woman that went to her mother for their hair. Even though she didn’t need to work anymore, she felt restless when she had nothing to do.

“All right, I’ll call you tomorrow mum. I’m gettin’ tired.”

“Bye, sweetheart. Don’t work too hard.”

Rose hung up the phone and went to do her nightly routine. After, she reclined on the bed and turned on the television, forcing herself to relax.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec and Rose talk. Rose comes to a surprising discovery.

Rose stood walked up to Ellie’s front door, a bottle of wine in hand. It had been a while since she’s had an actual girl friend, and any of those friends were when she was still in her teen years. Other than her parents’ parties and the dinners with Jake and his husband, she wasn’t too sure of the etiquette for the night. She knocked on the door.

 

The door opened a few moments later to show Ellie, a smile on her face. “Rose! Good, I hoped you’d find it all right.” She glanced down at the bottle. “And you brought wine! I think we’ll be good friends.” She winked and Rose laughed, both heading inside.

 

Ellie gave her a brief tour and introduced her to Tom and Fred, the latter whom instantly took to Rose.

 

Rose was sitting in the kitchen with Fred on her lap when the doorbell rang. She was slightly confused; was it a dinner party?

 

She heard Ellie open the door, “Come on in, Alec.”

 

Oh, bollocks.

 

Rose bit her lip and accidentally gripped Fred too tight, so she allowed him to wiggle out of her lap and run to his mother. She closed her eyes as she heard the pair of footsteps heading her way.

 

“Agent Tyler, nice to see you again.”

 

She fought back a sigh as she opened her eyes and turned toward him, a smile on her face. “Alec,” she was slightly amused at his eyes narrowing at the use of his name, “I didn’t know you’d be joining us. And please, call me Rose. We’re not at work.”

 

He raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. “All right, _Rose_.”

 

“Right!” Ellie clapped her hands once with an exaggerated smile. “Dinner should be ready in a minute. Alec, set the plates, will ya?”

 

He went to grab the plates, but grumbled the whole time about ‘proper use of names’.

 

Once they were all seated and eating, Rose cleared her throat and turned to him. “So, judging by your accent, you don’t seem to be a native. Where are you from?”

 

“Scotland.”

 

This dinner was going to be harder than she thought. She sighed and continued to eat, deciding it best not to try another bout of conversation. She knew a lot of his anger at her had to do with the fact that she’d come swooping in on his case, but she couldn’t help that there were aspects normal law enforcement wouldn’t be able to deal with. At first, his gruff nature was welcomed for its vast difference from the Doctor’s, but now that she had to deal with him on a daily basis, it’s quickly becoming old.

 

oooo

 

“All right, kids are in bed.” Ellie walked down the stairs and into the living room, sitting in one of the arm chairs. Alec and Rose were sat on the couch, on opposite sides from each other.

 

The television was on the news station, where there was a story on a recently convicted man in London.

 

“They should lock him up for life, maybe give him a capital sentence,” Alec stated casually, crossing his ankle over his knee and sipping on his wine.

 

Rose looked over at him incredulously, but he didn’t look back. “You’re not serious. People make mistakes; that doesn’t mean we should kill ‘em. It wasn’t like it was intentional.”

 

“He put himself in that situation. Are you forgetting about the other man? He doesn’t have the ability to walk away, so why should he?” He finally turned to look at her, an eyebrow raised.

 

“It was a horrible thing and he definitely deserves punishment, but not to be killed. That doesn’t make us any better than what he did.” The Doctor had always said that she was compassionate, but he also said it was a good thing. She glanced over at Ellie, who was looking between the two with interest and perhaps a hint of reluctance, not sure whether to let them continue on.

 

Alec set down him glass on the side table and leaned toward Rose, elbows on his knees. “It sets an example. General deterrence; when people see what happens when you make this big of a ‘mistake’,” she gave him a look at his condescending tone, “then they think twice before making that same ‘mistake’. Law and order.” He shrugged and leaned back, grabbing his glass again.

 

“He can be made an example of in prison. But killing? Our own species, at that. I’ve known men that have killed, and sometimes it’s not their fault. Sometimes they have no choice.” She looked away, thoughts turned to the Doctor. “But to kill to set an example? That’s not what humanity is about. Sometimes people need to be showed compassion.”

 

Alec stared at her for a few more moments before relaxing into the couch, a small smile twitching at the corners of his mouth.

 

oooo

 

A few hours later, Rose left – Ellie not allowing her to help clean up – which left Alec and Ellie alone to do the cleaning. They worked in silence, and it wasn’t until he was getting ready to leave that she voiced her thoughts.

 

“Some talk between you two. She holds her own.”

 

Alec stiffened for a moment, then continued to put on his coat. “She’s passionate, I’ll give her that.”

 

Ellie smirked and crossed her arms. “Don’t think I didn’t see that smile on your face.”

 

“She gained my respect. That’s all.” He reached for the door handle.

 

“Gained your respect? That it? She is rather pretty.” She looked down at her fingernails casually.

 

“Miller,” Alec growled with a hint of warning.

 

oooo

 

The next day, all three drove to the site of the readings. When Rose had gotten back from Ellie’s, she saw that the readings had peaked up to a 9 for a split second, then back down. It was beyond unusual.

 

Once she had positioned the equipment, she handed extra readers to Ellie and Alec. “If the number gets higher than 6 at all, call me and stay where you are. The reading went all the way up to 9 last night, so I want to see if we get anything else.

 

They all went their own ways. Rose was thankful to now be able to have others help out, since it had taken an insurmountable amount of time when she was alone. She wasn’t too keen on spending her day out on the cold beach.

 

Alec had taken the East, moving slowly, his eyes roaming from the reader to his surroundings. He couldn’t even see the other two, who were on the opposite side of the cliffs. When he looked down at the reader, he was surprised to see it all the way up to 9.4. “Shite.” He pulled out his phone, careful to not jostle the reader, and dialed Rose’s number. “Hey Rose, I’ve got readings up to 9.4.”

 

“ _Okay, I’m coming to you. Hold on._ ”

 

He put his phone back in his pocket and looked out at the ocean as he waited.

 

“Hey, what’ve you got?” She was running up to him, and pulled the reader out of his waiting hands. “Blimey! All right, here, take mine.” She thrust her own reader in his hand. “Take over my area. I’m going to look into this and then give Torchwood a call.”

 

He furrowed his brow. “High readings are bad, right? Wouldn’t it make more sense if I was with you?” He didn’t like the idea of leaving her out of his sight, especially after everything she had told him about the nature of the crime. “People have been disappearing. You could be next.”

 

She gave him a small smile. “I’ve been doing this a long time, Detective, but thank you for your consideration. We need to cover as much area as possible, and I have my phone.”

 

He huffed. “I’m not being _considerate_ , I’m being smart.”

 

“Detective, I’ll be fine, I promise.” She gave him another smile, and then turned her attention back to the reader.

 

Alec grumbled, but complied. He refused to allow her to be in his line of sight, though, but stayed far enough for her not to notice.

 

Rose continued walking again, farther and farther away, and it didn’t even seem she was in the area of the initial readings anymore. Sand was starting to give away to grass, but the reading stayed. She furrowed her brow and continued on. A few minutes later and the number started to increase again, all the way to 10. “What the hell….” Her words died out as she looked up. She was standing in front of the beginning of a small forest, but it was just one tree that held her attention. Words were carved into the bark.

 

_BAD WOLF._


	4. Chapter 4

Bad Wolf. The words had been haunting her all night, and into the light of sunrise. Was it a sign of the Doctor? Would she finally find him again? She had contemplated calling Torchwood the night before – she felt it was too soon to open that can of worms with the Broadchurch PD – but thought it better to investigate a little more on her own, first. She knew that if they caught news of it, there would be a team out here in no time, and she didn’t want to worry the locals anymore than they already were.

 

When the bedside clock struck 7:00, she decided it was best to get up. She sighed, knowing that she was bound to be tired for a good amount of the day, but luckily her time with the Doctor and overnight Torchwood operations had jaded her to the fatigue much more than the average person. She showered quickly and dressed for the day. She had told the DI and DS that she would meet them at the station at 8:30. The clock read 8:00 once she had finished her routine and she figured they wouldn’t mind if she was a little early.

 

It didn’t take long to make the trip, so she had decided to stop by the local coffee shop to pick up some cups, having memorized what they like from previous mornings.

 

“Rose! Ooh, I hope those are for us.”

 

She smiled at Ellie. “Of course. Figure we’ll need some energy boosters, if you’re anything like me.” She handed Ellie hers. They walked to Alec’s office, Ellie knocking twice before letting them both in.

 

He looked up and set his eyes on the cups in Rose’s hands.

 

She walked over and placed his in front of him. “Have some energy.”

 

He raised an eyebrow. “How do you know my preference,” he said slowly, his accent especially thick with the last word.

 

She shrugged. “I pay attention.”

 

“How much?” He lifted his hips slightly to retrieve his wallet from his back pocket and opened it up, looking at her expectantly.

 

She shook her head and waved a hand. “It’s on me.” When he went to protest, she held up her hand in a ‘stop’ position. “Really.”

 

He looked at her for a moment with a frown, then sighed and put his wallet back. “So, what’re starting with today, Tyler?”

 

She rolled her eyes at his usage of her last name, but refrained from teasing. “Well, I figured we’d go over the transcript of the readings again and pinpoint the strongest areas, so I can keep an eye on it.”

 

They spent most of the morning going over all of their findings, and then Rose left to put the coordinates into the main signal device back at the hotel and to call Torchwood.

 

ooo

 

Rose picked up her phone and dialed her stepfather’s number, having just set up the new coordinates.

 

“ _Pete Tyler.”_

“Hey, Pete. Checking in with some higher readings after scoping the area yesterday, all the way up to a 9. Oddly enough, it seemed to get higher a bit away from the initial plot points.”

 

“ _I can send Mickey and Jake out there, if you need. That’s extremely high, Rose_.”

 

Rose felt her stomach drop. She wasn’t ready to deal with the scrutiny over Alec’s appearance, so she needed to keep everyone at bay. “No, that’s not necessary. No immediate threats have been placed yet. I’ll let you know if anything more serious comes up.”

 

“ _…All right. But call me **right away**_ _if anything else comes up. I’ll talk to you later._ ”

 

She sighed and pressed the end button, dropping her phone on the bed. She knew she should have said something about Bad Wolf, but couldn’t bring herself to breach the subject. No one from this universe would fully understand the seriousness of the phrase, only Mickey and the Doctor sharing that specific experience with her.

 

Only moments after she laid down on the bed for a small kip, her phone rang again. She groaned and groped for it blindly. “Hello?”

 

“ _We need you down at the station asap. There has been another disappearance._ ”

 

ooo

 

“Chloe Latimer was reported missing by her mother half an hour ago.” He poked the case file in front of him, eyes focused on Rose and Ellie. “We need to find her, and fast. After the murder case, it can’t be good on the family.”

 

Ellie shook her head, her eyes sad. “Those poor people have been through so much. They can’t lose another child, it’s not fair.”

 

Alec sighed. “It’s part of the job. Shut it off.”

 

Rose glanced between the two, her brow furrowing in confusion “Murder?”

 

The both looked at her in shock. “You mean you don’t know about the Latimer boy’s murder? It was on every news station for months.”

 

Rose felt a blush creep onto her cheeks. “I had been so busy at Torchwood and the…project I was working on, that I didn’t really pay much attention to the outside world.” She shrugged.

 

Ellie blinked. “ _Really_ didn’t pay attention, then.” She glanced away and rubbed her arm. “The Latimer’s little boy, Danny, was killed. Only eleven years old.”

 

Rose felt a slight sting in her heart. No child should be taken so cruelly from the world. “That’s horrible. Did you manage to catch the killer at least?” She didn’t miss the look the two shared at the question.

 

“We did,” Alec stated with finality, and Rose didn’t press further. He sighed and stood up. “We’ll need to talk to the family. Do you know how to deal with victims?” He looked at Rose with both eyebrows raised.

 

She nodded. “Many times. I’m often requested for it by the board, somethin’ about them feeling comfortable around me. I’d like to come.”

 

He sniffed and nodded once, moving toward the door. “Miller, stay here and hold the place up.”

 

Rose was a bit confused by the relieved look on her face, but didn’t comment as she followed him out.

 

ooo

 

“Where was the last place she was seen?” Alec pulled out a pad of paper and a pen.

 

“She was with Dean. He told us she went out to get them something to eat, but never returned. We checked the restaurant, and they said she never came in,” Mark responded, looking down at his hands with a hard look on his face.

 

Alec writes it down. “And…what restaurant was this?”

 

“Just the local Chinese takeaway.”

 

He nodded and jotted more down.

 

Beth Latimer was holding an infant close to her chest with a devastated expression. “I just don’t understand. Why would they take her? What has she done? This can’t happen again.”

 

Rose took a seat in the chair near Beth. She gave her a gentle smile and laid a hand on her wrist. “We are going to do everything in our power to bring your daughter back.”

 

Beth looked at her, her face still troubled. “Promise me. Promise me you’ll bring her back.” Her words were vehement.

 

Rose glanced up at Alec, then back to her. “We will.”

 

ooo

 

While in the car, Rose noticed Alec huff a couple of times. After the third, she sighed and turned to him. “What?”

 

“You can’t just promise that we’ll find her. There hasn’t been luck with the others, and they don’t need to get their hopes up if she winds up dead.”

 

Rose narrowed her eyes. “Hope is something everyone needs, especially in a time like this. A man I used to travel with…he always promised, and you know what? More often than not, he kept it.”

 

He sighed and shook his head. “What happens if we don’t? They end up crushed, and who do you think they’re going to take it out on?”

 

“And you don’t think they would be crushed if I didn’t promise them? You don’t think they wouldn’t still put the blame on us? It’s our job to find her, and we will.” She looked at him for a moment, though if he noticed he didn’t give any hint. “You know Alec, I think sometimes you need to have a little hope.”

 

“You called me Alec.”

 

“Yes, I did. It’s a nice name, you should use it more often.”

 

They spent the rest of the ride in silence.

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Got this up a lot quicker than I thought! It's a good break from studying for my exams.
> 
> Also, I really need a beta for this story. If anyone is interested, either review with your interest or hit the "contact" button on my profile. Thanks!

A whole week goes by without any spikes in the readings. It isn’t until the Tuesday after that the energy peaked. Rose went straight to the site, and she felt uneasy at what was in front of her.

 

She was taken to the same place that she had seen Bad Wolf before, but now _every tree_ had the words carved in. Did she do this when she absorbed the time vortex? Was she so powerful that she could send the message across the multiverse?

 

After checking out the area with no luck other than this, she decided it was time to call the station to alert them of her arrival. Everyone had been on edge since Chloe went missing, and it seemed to have become first priority for the precinct. She was quite worried for the girl as well, but she also had to pay attention to any alien behavior, as well. It still tied in, since there was a good chance her – and the others – disappearance had to do with alien activity.

 

“We’ve finally got some irregularities coming in,” Rose said, walking straight into Alec’s office. Ellie had taken a personal day, since Fred had caught the flu.

 

He looked up at her and pulled out the Torchwood file. “So, what are we looking at?”

 

She walked over and peered over his shoulder, pointing to one of the tables she had set up for all of the data. “We’ve got the highest yet. It’s at a 10, which is a very bad thing.”

 

Alec sighed and ran his hands down his face. “Where do we go from here?”

 

She was quiet for a moment, mulling things over. She knew he wasn’t completely in the know, and consequently didn’t understand the severity. After thinking it over, she realized her best route was to reveal her deepest secrets; her life with the Doctor and Bad Wolf. It wouldn’t be as bad telling him about Bad Wolf, unlike her team who mostly had firsthand knowledge on the matter, but she was reluctant to tell him about the Doctor. Should she reveal his similarity? How would Alec react? She was slightly confused as to why she cared so much about what he would think, so she decided not to dwell on it. She learned from the Doctor that appearance wasn’t what mattered, but what was underneath.

 

“Well…before I can delve into that, I think I need to tell you some things. About my life in the other universe.”

 

He glanced over his shoulder at her and nodded his head.

 

She started to fiddle her fingers and bit her lip. “If you don’t mind, maybe we could pick up some lunch and go back to my room? I’d feel more comfortable away from everyone near by.”

 

He seemed to think it over, his eyes not focused as he weighed his options. “All right. If it helps you tell the story, it ultimately will help the case.” He motioned for her to move back so he could push his chair out from under the desk and get up.

 

ooo

 

They went to a nearby chippy for her and a sandwich shop for him, and went into her hotel room. She sat down on the bed and motioned for him to sit next to her. He took a seat and looked at her expectantly.

 

She took a deep breath, looking down at her shoes. “I guess I should start from the beginning. When I was nineteen, I met a man, an absolutely magnificent man that changed my life forever.” She paused, biting her lip. “He…I traveled with him, through time and space. I even met Charles Dickens.” She chuckled when she noticed his eyebrows rising almost to his hairline.

 

“He was alien, which I’m sure you already expected. A Time Lord, most likely the more powerful species in the universe. Well, at least my universe; he told me Time Lords don’t have parallel versions of themselves, only being a part of the main universe, the start of creation itself. He once told me that his people created black holes. I’ll admit, I was a bit surprised. We were on a base on this planet orbiting a black hole, somehow with a gravitational field. He said that the area was impossibly old…that he didn’t know who trapped-“ She stopped for a moment, deciding not to delve into her adventure with ‘Satan’.  “The thing is…if they invented black holes, that must mean it was his people that created this…sort of prison. For this monster.” He had never even brought up such a possibility, and at the time she didn’t think to ask.

 

She knew she was getting off topic, so she quickly moved on. “This man…he was the last of the Time Lords.” She didn’t specify any further. “He could change his face. He had this ability called regeneration; when he was dying, his body repaired itself. She changed.” She thought for a moment, trying to decide whether or not to tell him about her second Doctor. In the end, she decided it was best to keep it to herself for now; they weren’t quite close enough yet for such an intimate and shocking detail. She kept herself from dwelling on the fact she added in ‘yet’.

 

“Anyway, his whole body changed, but he was inherently the same. Certain personality traits changed, but everything that really counted stayed the same.” She took a deep breath. “When…when I was out by the area with the highest readings, there were two words carved into seemingly every tree.” She took a deep breath and kept quiet.

 

After a while, Alec raised his eyebrows and motioned for her to continue.

 

She nodded once. “The words were Bad Wolf. The story behind those words is quite long, so get comfortable.” She decided to move back so she was resting against the headboard. Alec hesitated for a moment, and then got up and moved around the other side of the bed and mimicked her position on the other side, making sure there was an appropriate distance between them.

 

She continued on. “The Doctor – that was his name. Anyway, when the whole Bad Wolf debacle took place, I was with my first Doctor. It was actually the reason why he regenerated. He saved my life at the cost of one of his.” She shook her head and looked ahead wistfully. “He sent me away. He knew that there was a very small chance, virtually no chance, that anyone would survive what he had planned, so he sent me away. He tricked me into going in his ship. It was called the TARDIS – Time And Relative Dimension In Space. That was how we traveled in space and time. The best years of my life…” She cleared her throat.

 

“Anyway, I wasn’t having any of that. I know we meant well, but there was no way I just going to leave him to die! I wasn’t aware of regeneration yet at this point…you should have seen my reaction when he was engulfed in golden light and suddenly with a new face.” She let out a breathy laugh. “I managed to get back to him by opening the center of the TARDIS. I looked into the heart – the ship was sentient; I forgot to mention – and absorbed the energy from the time vortex. I’m pretty sure it lightly bonded me to her, as well. After everything, I was able to pick up on her emotions and communicate in a way I never had before. I never really told the Doctor about; it didn’t seem too important, since I felt fine. Sorry, I keep on getting off track.” She shook her head to clear her thoughts.

 

“I managed to get back to the time and place he was trapped in, and just on time, too. I don’t remember my time as, for lack of better words, a goddess of time, only what the Doctor told me after months of pleading. He told me that I could see everything. My exact words apparently were that I could see all that is, all that was, all that ever could be.” She looked down, her eyes slightly dull. She knew her voice had become rather flat, hiding her true pain. “I was engulfed in golden light. I destroyed the enemies we were facing the time. I ended the Time War.” She decided not to elaborate on that part out of respect for the Doctor.

 

“I had spread the words Bad Wolf all over, to lead myself to that location. It also seems to be a sort of message. A message to lead myself to anywhere I’m most needed. I created myself. Which is why I’m so worried about this. It can only mean danger.” She stopped there.

 

Alec was quiet for quite a while, processing everything. It was one thing for her to give facts about Torchwood and the threats they dealt with, but a completely different experience when she actually shared such a story with him. It was surreal. “So…do you still have this vortex thing in you?” He was slightly worried that she would all of the sudden start glowing.

 

She shook her head. “He told me he took it all out of me. Well, as far as we know. I told you how he gave one of his lives for me; that’s why.”

 

They sat in silence for several minutes, Rose lost in thoughts of the Doctor and Alec still processing.

 

Finally he sighed. “We should get back to the station, and then tomorrow…we’ll tell everything to Miller.”

 

She nodded. They both got up and walked out the door.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Getting this up quickly! Hope you enjoy. Lots more Alec and Rose in this one.

Telling her story to Ellie wasn’t as hard as she thought. She felt lucky to have Alec there to support her, which surprised her quite a bit. She had a feelings he knew a thing or two about pain and loss. It was in his eyes, so much like the Doctor’s in more ways than one.

 

Her reaction was a bit different from Alec’s; while he was passive in his comprehension of everything thrown at him, she was a bit theatric. She asked many questions, mostly about the Doctor. She seemed flabbergasted by the idea of her loving a man from another planet, yet soaking up their story like a Nicholas Sparks book. In the end, she was sympathetic toward Rose, offering condolences for her many hardships. It wasn’t late after that she got a call from the school; Tom had now fallen ill, most likely catching it from his brother.

 

Once she was out the door, Alec and Rose moved to his office. She took one of the two seats near the door and was surprised yet again when he opted for the one next to hers. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, contemplating. “You know Rose, if you ever…well, I understand how difficult certain things can be. I guess what I’m trying to say is my door is always open.” He nodded once, and then got up to take his chair behind the desk, his focus on the computer.

 

She took this as her dismissal, so she left his office with a quick goodbye and went back to the hotel.

 

The next day, the first turned up.

 

She got the call from Ellie. A man, the first reported, came bustling into the station, disoriented and staggering to the front desk. At first, the woman stationed thought he was drunk, but soon recognized him. Alec was informed and that was when Ellie got a hold of her.

 

“He just showed up?” she said the moment she made it into Alec’s office. Ellie had gone to take the man to the hospital, hopefully able to bring him back for questioning.

 

Alec glanced up at her from where he was perched over the case file. “Right through the doors. Says he doesn’t remember a thing.”

 

Rose furrowed her brow. Her first thought was retcon. What kind of beings had that sort of technology just on hand? And to be used on a completely random person and most likely the others, as well. It made absolutely no sense.

 

It was a couple hours later when Ellie and the man in question walked through the door. He was ushered into one of the interrogation rooms with Rose; apparently Alec didn’t have the greatest record with victims and Rose had been known to be best with communication at Torchwood.

 

Rose decided to take the seat next to him, a soft smile on her face. “Hello. Kyle, was it?”

 

He simply nodded, eyes darting around the room.

 

She cleared her throat and leaned in. “Kyle, I hear that you are having some trouble with your memory.” She contemplated placing a hand on his shoulder, but decided it was a bad idea due to his behavior. He seemed to be in fight or flight mode right now.

 

His eyes moved to look into hers. “It’s…I can’t remember a thing. Only what I felt. So vivid, but I don’t know how. I don’t know why. Why do I feel like this?” His eyes were glassy and his breathing began to increase.

 

“It’ll be all right, Kyle, I promise. You’ve gone through quite a lot. Take your time.” She smiled again and tilted her head to catch his gaze again. “You’re safe now. We won’t let anything happen to you again.”

 

After some time, his breathing evened out again, and he even made it as far as to give her a small smile. “I…I’d rather not talk more about it right now. I just wanna sleep.”

 

She nodded. “Okay. We’ll have someone drive you home, as well as have an officer outside to guard. Let me walk you out.” She stood and offered her hand to him.

 

He stared at it for a moment, and then took it, standing in the process. “Thank you.”

 

ooo

 

Over the next few days, more and more people were turning up. Their stories were all exactly the same: no memories, only feeling a sort of dread. Eventually, Chloe was the only one that had yet to reappear.

 

Rose had called Torchwood the night of the first man’s return, filling them in. The news wasn’t as uplifting as they had hoped when they caught word of it beforehand. There was the option of bringing one in to look over, something to trigger certain memories. Rose made it clear that it was not an option; none of the victims were stable enough to be poked and prodded.

 

Five days went by with no news of Chloe’s whereabouts and her family was growing more hopeless by the minute, which in turn turned to anger. Rose’s heart went out to the Latimer’s; they didn’t deserve everything they had been through. None of those people did.

 

At the end of the week, she had decided to go down to the hotel bar. There had been no more Bad Wolf sightings as far as she could tell, but they had enough on their hands at the moment. All the while, the balance seemed to have tipped slightly between her and Alec; he was calling her Rose more often and wasn’t nearly as stand offish toward her as she was used to. One day he had finally taken to shaving and the familiarity of his appearance almost caused her to run right out of the building. Everything was becoming so overwhelming and she needed to unwind.

 

“Fuzzy Navel, thanks.” She sat down on the stool and smiled up at Becca.

 

After the drink was placed in front of her, Becca leaned over with clasped hands. “I’m so glad those people turned up; the town was really starting to worry. After the whole Danny thing…” She shook her head.

 

Rose gave her a slight smile and quickly changed the subject. “So, how are things holding up around here? I’m sorry I’ve been so anti-social, there’s just been a lot going on.”

 

Becca laughed and waved her off. “Think nothing of it.” They chatted for a few minutes before Rose caught sight of shaggy brown hair. “Inspector?”

 

Alec turned around, eyebrows raised. He relaxed when he laid eyes on her. “Ah, almost forgot that you’re staying here,” he lied, his eyes glancing to the side before moving back to her.

 

She fought back a chuckle; after her time with the Doctor, she had learned to read people quite well. Or perhaps just him. She had to remind herself that Alec was not the Doctor, something she hadn’t had to do lately, and that his expressions wouldn’t always match. “Yep. First time being down here, though.” Becca had moved on to help another customer, so she turned her full attention to him. “D’ya come here often?”

 

Alec shrugged. “Not too much. More when I was staying here myself.” When Becca came back over, Alec quickly ordered a drink and then turned back. “Listen, Rose. Now, feel free to say no, but my curiosity is getting the better of me.”

 

She knew what was coming. Her heart rate increased as she looked down at her glass, sliding it from side to side. “Go on, then. Ask.”

 

He sighed. “Well, this whole Bad Wolf…thing, for lack of better words. I can’t get it out of my head. Honestly, I’m still trying to wrap my head around this life of yours, all these things that belong on telly and in fairytales.”

 

She snorted. “I wouldn’t exactly call it fairytale material. Though, telly I could see.” She cracked a smile.

 

He glanced down, a small smile making it’s way to his face. “We could start one up. Make millions. We could call it…what was the name of that man again? Or, the alien. The one you traveled with.”

 

“The Doctor.”

 

“Hm…no other name to go with it? Just ‘Doctor’?” He raised an eyebrow.

 

She smiled and nodded. “That’s it. Well, it’s not his real name, apparently, but he’s the only one that knows that. Some sort of Time Lord thing.”

 

He noticed her beginning to withdraw, so heleaned back and nodded once. “Ah. So then we could call it…’Doctor Who’.”

 

She laughed. “Well, many people do tend to ask him that. It’s fitting.” She grew quiet. Her thoughts turned back to one of her biggest secrets. She was beginning to grow on this man, and he seemed to be warming up to her, too. Despite her reservations to run away, she knew she had to reveal one very important fact about her Doctor. “Alec…could you come up to my room with me?”

 

When his eyes widened comically, she realized how horribly she had worded it. “No, no, not like that! Sorry, that was my fault. I just…have something to show you.”

 

He looked a bit uncomfortable, but nodded. “Yes. Does it have to do with the case?”

 

She bit her lip. “Well, yes and no. Actually, not really. It has to do with the Doctor. There’s just something I really think you need to see. If that’s okay. If not, no problem, it’s not horribly important.” She was reminded of the Doctor with the way she was rambling, so she quickly cut herself off and jumped from the seat.

 

Alec put down a couple notes for the drinks, despite Rose’s protests, and then they both left to go to her room.

 

Once inside, she motioned for Alec to sit on her bed. Her hands were shaking when she went to open up her suitcase, empty except for a picture. She always kept it with her. The day had been one of their bests; it was the day they had gone to a planet with a never-ending sunset and flying sting rays. She had them pose for a picture with the beautiful scenery in the background, both of them with wide grins on their faces. She wondered if Alec looked like that if he grinned. It was just after she took it when he asked her how long she was going to stay with him.

 

She chooses to ignore the fact that the day after, they went to visit her mother.

 

She took a deep breath and turned around, holding the picture close to her chest. She moved slowly over to the bed, trying to prolong the inevitable. Finally, she was seated next to him. When she glanced up, he was staring at her in confusion and slight concern.

 

“Before I show you this…I really should prepare you. I really don’t know how you’ll react, which scares the hell out of me. You could completely freak out or-“ She was beginning to ramble again, so she cut herself off. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She handed him the picture.

 

There was silence. She couldn’t bring herself to look at him.

 

“What-who-this can’t be me. I’ve only just met you. How do you have this? Where is it even at?”

 

She finally turned to him. He had gotten off of the bed, his eyebrows drawn together and shock written all over his face. She shook her head, even though she knew he couldn’t see her. “It’s not you. It’s…it’s the Doctor.”

 

He slowly looked from the picture to her. The air was thick with tension as he stared at her. “Did you know I was here?”

 

She looked at him in confusion. “What?”

 

“When you took this case. Did you take it because I was here? Have some sick fantasy planted in your head, turn me into this ‘man’ of yours?” His tone was growing angrier until he was almost shouting at the end.

 

She could feel tears coming forth as she shook her head. “I _promise_ , Alec-“

 

“Don’t call me that.”

 

One tear fell. “I didn’t. When I first saw you in your office, I was blindsided. It was the complete opposite! I wanted to get out of here, wanted to never see you again. _It just hurt so much_.” She buried her face in her hands, tears flowing freely and shoulders shaking with quiet sobs. She hated herself for breaking like this.

 

A few moments later, the bed dipped slightly and a soft pressure was placed on her shoulder. “You understand my confusion, right? This man, he’s a blood copy of me.” She turned to look at him and he looked back, his expression softening. “It must’ve been hard, though. If what you say is true. If you really didn’t know about me.”

 

“I swear.”

 

“I believe you.” He cocked his head slightly and his eyes were sympathetic. She’d never seen this look before. “Rose, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have shouted. But why didn’t you tell me about this earlier? When you brought up the whole Bad Wolf thing.”

 

She shook her head. “I couldn’t. We had to focus on the case; there was no reason to bring this up. We needed to focus on facts. Besides, I had already overloaded you with my stories. This would’ve probably thrown you over the edge.”

 

He sighed heavily. “You’re probably right.” He then stood up, placing the picture on the bedside table before heading toward the door. He paused, and then turned around one last time. “You should really get some rest.” He stared at her for a moment. “Rose.” He nodded once and offered her a soft smile.

 

“Al-um, Inspector?” When he turned back around, she took a deep breath. “I hope this doesn’t interfere with the…case.” She glanced down. They both knew she wasn’t just talking about that.

 

He was silent for a moment, then shook his head. “It won’t,” he said softly. He fidgeted, contemplating, before he spoke up again. “And you can call me Alec.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You're all getting another chapter quite early! Second day in a row. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy.

The next day, all three were completely focused on Chloe’s case. They had been questioning all of the victims thoroughly, doing everything they could to try and jog their memories. It made absolutely no sense as to why they have kept her for so long; she’s just a kid.

 

Rose and Ellie made sure to keep the Latimer clan up to date – the family never had the best time warming up to Alec.

 

Later on when Rose had left to go back to the hotel, Alec called Ellie into his office.

 

She walked through the door. “Did you find something?”

 

He shook his head and bit the inside of his cheek. At some point, Ellie had become his friend, really his only friend in town. He had acquaintances, but no one he could really talk to. After Ellie’s husband was taken away, she had confided in him, and vice versa when he was going in for his surgery. He rubbed a hand over his jaw, his mouth slightly open. “Rose…showed me something yesterday.”

 

Ellie raised an eyebrow, a slight smirk on her face. “So, it’s Rose now?”

 

“Miller.” His tone held slight warning, before he sighed. “It had to deal with her story…well, the man in her story. She showed me a picture of his last night.”

 

“You saw her last night?”

 

He narrowed his eyes. “Don’t get any ideas. I was at Trader’s and she was at the bar. Called me over. Anyway, I had asked her about him. She got this look, and then asked me to come up to her room. Not for what you think,” he quickly said while holding up his hands in front of him. “She said she had something to show me?”

 

Ellie closed the door and sat down in one of the chairs. “The picture?”

 

He nodded. He stayed silent for a moment, then sighed. “He-well, his appearance. It was…” He sighed again, this time with agitation.

 

“Go on. It’ll be easier just to get it out.”

 

“He looked exactly like me. Not just similar, but like a bloody copy.”

 

Her eyes widened slightly. “Really? Like a double or something?”

 

He nodded, his gaze falling to his lap and arms crossed.

 

Ellie leaned forward. “What did you do?”

 

He shrugged. “Questioned her intentions. Tried to understand. She told me she had no idea about me, though.” He bit his lip. “I believe her. They way she reacted…it was obvious how badly it was hurting her. And it also explains why she’d hardly look at me when she first got here.”

 

She smiled. “You’ve really paid attention to her, haven’t you?”

 

He glanced at her, not answering. He leaned forward, opening the case file again, and Ellie knew the conversation was over. “So, have we gotten anywhere with these victims?”

 

She groaned and slumped. “Absolutely no where. None of them remember a single thing. Rose said something, I can’t remember what it was called. Think it started with an ‘r’.”

 

“Retcon.” At her raised eyebrow, he elaborated. “She told me, as well. She said that they’re probably too far gone and it’s been too long to do anything to reverse it. We’re absolutely bloody stuck.” He shook his head in exasperation.

 

ooo

 

After Rose left, she took a quick shower and went to get dinner. It was around 9:00 when she was finished. Now that she was alone, all she could think about was Bad Wolf. Whatever the reason for it, it couldn’t be good. But then again, what if it led her to the Doctor? She shook her head, clearing it. No, if he was here, he would have come to her.

 

Or would he?

 

Maybe he’d moved on from her, this man that kept running. He left Jack (she knew his excuse of him rebuilding the Earth was absolute bullshit). Who’s to say he wasn’t just done with her? She was sure he found another companion by now, and rightly so. He needed a hand to hold.

 

She forced herself to push all thought of him aside, focusing strictly on facts. She needed to go and investigate, and alone. If someone came with her, they would set boundaries for sure, especially after she explained the story behind it. It would be better in the night, even though she’d most likely not be able to see a thing. There was a better chance that whatever was out there would feel more at ease when the town had fallen quiet.

 

Making her decision, she quickly put on her shoes and headed down to her car. After everything she had seen, being in the forest at night was hardly unnerving. She made sure to park at the beach, in a spot slightly hidden by a wooden shed.

 

Once she was at the outskirts of the forest, she shined the light on the same tree with the words. It was still there. She didn’t know why she felt that it could have been removed. After all, it was carved in. She took a deep breath and stepped farther in.

 

Once inside, she dimmed the light slightly so as to not alert anyone of her presence, if there was anyone even out there. She walked around for a good part of an hour and hadn’t found anything, other than those same words on every tree. She sighed, disappointed at her lack of findings, and began her journey back.

 

That’s when she felt the first sharp pain in her head. “Ugh!” She closed her eyes and clutched her head, dropping the flashlight in the process.

 

Suddenly, images were flashing behind her closed eyelids. Bright golden light, all around her, and singing. Such beautiful singing.

 

_I am the Bad Wolf._

She dropped down to her knees, shaking.

 

_I can see everything. All that is, all that was, all that every could be._

She was whimpering and tears were streaming down her face as she fell on her side, curling into a ball.

 

_My head. It’s killin’ me._

**_You’ll be ours_. **

This time, the voice wasn’t her own. It was the last thing she heard before everything went black.

ooo

 

The first thing she sensed was a steady beeping noise. She was on her back, not feeling the hard ground, but a cushioned bed. Her eyes fluttered open, unfocused.

 

“You’re awake.”

 

She startled slightly and looked for the source of the voice. She blinked once. “Doctor?” No. That didn’t make sense. She squeezed her eyes shut and scrunched up her nose. “Alec.”

 

When she opened her eyes again, he was looking at her impassively. “Someone found you close to the outskirts of the forest. What the hell were you doing out there? And all alone?” By the end, his voice was slightly raised, and she could almost sense a hint of fear.

 

She sat up slowly, her head spinning as she did. She felt an arm curl around her back to push her up more comfortably. “You shouldn’t be moving.” His voice had gone flat again. She watched as he took his seat again.

 

She licked her lips and looked down at the sheets. “I just wanted to check it out again. I thought that maybe I could find something if their guard was down. That is, if it even was.” She shook her head.

 

“Why did you go alone?”

 

She sighed. “I knew if I brought someone along, I wouldn’t be able to investigate as thoroughly as I wanted. Wouldn’t be able to go as deep as I did.”

 

“For good reason.”

 

She swallowed and stayed silent. “Where’s Ellie?” she said, wanting to change the subject.

 

He stared at her for a long moment, silent. “She’s filing a report for you. Finding someone unconscious in the woods isn’t exactly something you come across everyday.” He crossed his arms.

 

“No one was out there. It was just me.”

 

“We figured as much when there were no visible signs of injury. But your brain…the doctor said that something was off. Can’t quite remember what.” He shook his head.

 

She tapped her finger against the bed, not sure if she should reveal what had actually happened. If she did, then they would most likely be closely monitoring her for the rest of the investigation. At the same time, it was important evidence. She could ask for them to keep it on the down low, of course, but they also had to do their job.

 

In the end, she decided to at least give half the story. Omission wasn’t exactly a lie, after all. “I…something happened. B-bad Wolf.” She closed her eyes, her head falling.

 

“What about it?”

 

She stayed silent.

 

He huffed, impatient. “Rose, you can’t just start talking and then drop off. This is important and your life could potentially be in danger.”

 

Her head shot up then, her eyes dark. “You don’t think I know that? I might have told you my story, but you have _no idea_ what actually happened. I barely do myself!”

 

“Then help me! We’re trying to help you, so stop acting like we’re bloody enemies.” He crossed his arms and looked away, his lips drawn in a firm line.

 

She ran a hand through her hair. “I just had these…images. Memories, I think. Next thing I know, I wake up here.” She shrugged, purposely leaving out the last thing she had heard. If she revealed that, she knew they would take her off the case.

 

“What kind of images?”

 

“Bad Wolf! What else would it be?” When he raised an eyebrow at her, she turned remorseful. “Sorry. I’m just trying to make sense of it all myself. It’s…” She shook her head.

 

He stayed silent for a moment, lost in thought, and then turned to her. “You should probably get some rest.” He stood up, heading to the door without another word.

 

“Alec?”

 

He turned to her.

 

She smiled softly. “Thanks. For staying here, I mean.”

 

He shrugged and looked away. “Someone had to and we don’t have Torchwood’s contact information. You should really give that to us, by the way.” He left quickly, not giving her an opportunity to answer.

 

She stared at the door, and then sighed and lay back down. She was starting to feel a bit drowsy again, so she took his advice.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Delves a little deeper into the Rose/Alec aspect.
> 
> A special thanks to my beta, Diomede!

“Brought some lunch.” Rose walked into Alec’s office, carrying a greasy paper bag. “Don’t worry, the grease is from mine.” She smirked.

 

They hadn’t talked about the day at the hospital at all, but things seemed to be okay between them, so she wasn’t worried. She was starting to see him as a friend, though she wasn’t sure about him; it was hard to tell with his usual demeanor.

 

She handed his food to him and he thanked her. She had already handed Ellie her food, pretending not to see her smirk as she walked into Alec’s office alone. She sat down in a chair and grabbed a couple of vinegar covered chips. They ate in silence, before it became too thick for her to bear. “So, anything new?” She cringed slightly – it wasn’t as if she was gone that long while she picked up food.

 

If he noticed, he ignored it. “Not as such. We’re getting absolutely nowhere.” He sighed and rubbed his hands down his face, elbows placed on his desk. He looked at her, his eyes revealing how tired he really was. “You don’t remember anything else?”

 

She shook her head. “I’m sorry, I really am. There really isn’t anything else, just the memories. Not that they’ll help.” She felt bad, even though she couldn’t help it. There was just nothing to report on. Not wanting another awkward silence, she changed the subject. “So…d’you like it around here? Now that you’re here permanently?”

 

He raised an eyebrow and stopped eating. She looked down and blushed, which made him feel bad enough to answer. “It’s a nice town, not considering the amount of people that feel I’m a bit…” He waved a hand out in front of him. She chuckled and it made his heart warm. “Been here once when I was a wee lad.”

 

She smiled, picturing a tiny Alec splashing around in the water. “Bet it was nice. Quite a trip from Scotland.”

 

He shrugged. “My parents fought a lot. Spent most of the trip like that.” He was surprised at how much he was sharing, but there was just something about Rose that made him feel comfortable opening up like this. Maybe it was why she was so good with victims and suspects alike.

 

Her head cocked to the side with compassion in her eyes. “I’m sorry. It couldn’t have been easy growing up in a household like that.” She paused for a moment, mulling over what she’d say next. “One of the first trips the Doctor took me on was to see my father. He died when I was just a baby. When my mum talked about him, she made him sound like some kind of superhero.” She closed her eyes and smiled wistfully. “I didn’t even have to beg. He just took me.” She shook her head, her smile dropping. “But when I got there, watching my parents…all they did was fight. My mum actually thought that I was some girl he picked up.”

 

“This Doctor of yours seems almost too good to be true,” he said with a smirk, redirecting her thoughts.

 

She took the bait, not wanting to think about the light leaving her father’s eyes as he died on the street. “You don’t know the half of it.” She put a hand to her forehead and smiled while looking down. She made a content noise in the back of her throat while biting her lip and a grin forming.

 

Alec watched her. She was beautiful, he couldn’t deny it. She was also just such a good person, so compassionate, something he hadn’t seen in a very long time. Before he could stop himself, he blurted out, “Would you like to have dinner with me?” His eyes widened considerably.

 

Her grin faltered slowly and she blinked, wondering if she had heard him correctly. It was such a random thing to ask. Did she want to delve into something like that? She was surprised at how much she really did. She chastised herself; it was just dinner, not a marriage proposal. “Uh, yeah. Sounds nice. When?”

 

“Tonight? If you’re not too busy.”

 

She nodded with a bit too much enthusiasm, trying to cover up her nerves. “Sounds good. Maybe just something around here? I didn’t really bring anything fancy to wear…”

 

“Yeah, of course. This town isn’t completely hopeless.” He had visibly relaxed after her acceptance, and now had a smirk planted on his face.

 

She giggled – actually _giggled_ – and glanced down and then back up at him. “It’s quite nice. Completely different from London.”

 

The rest of lunch was spent with easy conversation, both more at ease than they’ve been in a long time.

 

ooo

 

Rose paced around her room, near the end of the bed. She hadn’t been on a date in…well, since “run”. Out of the small amount of clothing she brought, she only had one or two outfits for a night out. She hadn’t expected to make friends here, let alone be asked out on a date. At least, she was pretty sure it was a date.

 

She had settled on a simple pink cashmere sweater and hip hugging dark wash jeans. It wasn’t like they were going anywhere that would require dressing up. The small amounts of restaurants in the area were all rather casual. That didn’t mean she didn’t want to look nice, though. Just out of respect, she told herself. It would be rude for her to walk out looking like a mess. Never mind that she had curled her hair. Just a friendly outing.

 

She felt her nerves spike when there was a knock at her door. She shook her hands out and took a deep breath. This was the first ‘outing’ she had, or at least one her mother didn’t force on her, since she was taken from the Doctor. She put on a smile and opened the door. She faltered slightly, her smile a little less wide.

 

He stood there awkwardly with a small bouquet in his hand. None of that surprised her, but it was his appearance that caused her heart rate to increase. He had opted to wear a dark brown tailored ensemble with a dark blue oxford underneath, the first few buttons undone. He had also styled his hair a bit, though nowhere near tousled as much as she was used to with the Doctor. Minus the shoes and facial hair, he looked exactly like the Doctor on their trip to the Olympics 2012. “Uh, these are for you,” he muttered once he realized she wasn’t speaking anytime soon, and then held out the flowers.

 

She blinked a couple times and put the smile back on, pushing her shock away. “’Oh, they’re lovely, thank you. Please, come in.” She motioned for him to come inside while she looked around for something to put the flowers in.

 

He cringed slightly. “Sorry, I didn’t really think about where’d you put them. Figured they were appropriate. It was either that or chocolate and wine, or not wine, but I learned my lesson after the first time. I’m sure Ellie would be thrilled to tell you the story.” He rubbed the back of his neck as she reemerged from the bathroom where she found a glass.

 

She gave a mirthful laugh. “Oh, I’m sure it’s great. There seem to be a lot of stories detailing your…shortcomings.” She grabbed a jacket and waited for him to exit the room with her so she could lock the door. Since the town was small and old, each door had an old fashioned lock. “Ready?”

 

“Aye.” He led them both down to the front and to his car, opening the door for her.

 

“And I thought chivalry was dead,” she said with a smile once he was seated.

 

He smirked and glanced over at her, before backing out of the spot. “Aren’t the dead arts the most profound?”

 

The rest of the ride to the restaurant was spent in flirty banter. They pulled into the parking lot only minutes later, and he made a show of going around the car to open the door yet again.

 

She took his offered hand and got out of the car. “Why, thank you Mr. Hardy.”

 

He rolled his eyes good-naturedly and motioned for her to lead the way. When the hostess led them to a table, he ignored the surprised looks from some of the people dining that had had encounters with him. It was obvious they didn’t think they’d ever see him on a date, let alone with a young beautiful girl like Rose.

 

They picked up their menus, favoring silence while looking through.

 

Once the orders were placed, she looked over at him with a smile. She figured he wasn’t really one for small talk, so the start of a conversation would have to rely upon her. “So, how do you like Broadchurch? Figure there must be something good, if you stuck around after…”

 

He nodded; it was a fair question. “When I first came here, I only planned to stay as long as it took to finish the case. Was why I kept to the hotel for so long.” He tapped the table with one finger subconsciously. “I guess it just grew on me – small towns like this usually do, I’d imagine. Despite my less-than-ideal reputation.” He smiled when she laughed. “Anyway, it somehow just became home. Didn’t have much to go back to, anyway, so it wasn’t too difficult of a decision.” He hesitated, not sure if he should reveal some bigger things this early on. “The hardest part of the decision was, well…I have a daughter.” He watched her carefully for a reaction.

 

She didn’t give anything away, just smiled and nodded for him to go on.

 

“She’s not on the best terms with me, though. There were some things that I’d lied about, things that caused me to lose her. And once I came clean, she was then mad that I kept it from her in the first place.” He shrugged, trying to show nonchalance to mask the obvious pain.

 

“That must be hard.”

 

He nodded once. “Well, can’t blame her. Poor girl’s been through so much since the Sandbrook case. Didn’t really talk to me until I had my surgery.” At her confused look, he felt a surge of panic over what he had inadvertently revealed. “It was nothing, really. Just some heart troubles.”

 

She gave him that same look, the one so full of compassion that he suddenly wanted to confide in her. She was waiting patiently for him to continue. “An arrhythmia. Ah, had it during the Latimer case. Didn’t tell anyone, obviously, or else they wouldn’t have allowed me on the case. Or any case, really.”

 

The concern was plain on her face. “Alec, you could have killed yourself.”

 

“Almost did. Had a heart attack near the end.”

 

After a second of contemplation, she reached over and placed a hand over his. He looked up in surprise, and then relaxed. “When you were obviously so ill, why would you subject yourself to that?” Again, she was reminded of the parallels between this man and the Doctor.

 

He looked down, his discomfort apparent. It was obvious he had already revealed more than originally planned and she hoped he didn’t feel like she was pushing boundaries. “Just some things that happened with a case back at home.”

 

“The same one that caused distance between you and your daughter?”

 

He was quiet and his gaze was down on the table, but then he looked back up and nodded. “Yeah, same one. But, enough about that. You want to hear about the wonders of Broadchurch, aye?”

 

She left the topic alone and smiled broadly. They quickly became enraptured in a conversation about small towns and the best places to visit historical structures. By the end of the night, after she had closed the door of her hotel room behind her, she couldn’t wipe the smile off of her face. There was no kiss, which she was somewhat grateful for. She was still working through all of her feelings, and just by their conversation it seemed he hadn’t done anything much like this since his divorce.

 

 Either way, she was very glad she had accepted his invitation.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter most likely won't come until around Thursday. Finals tomorrow through Wednesday.
> 
> Again, thanks to my beta Diomede!

“Knock knock.” Ellie stood in the doorway of Alec’s office, arms folded and a knowing smirk on her face.

 

Alec sighed. “What is it, Miller?”

 

“Talked to Rose a little bit ago.”

 

He groaned inwardly. He should have expected she would’ve found out, one way or another. He just didn’t think it would be this bloody soon. At the same time, he was curious about what Rose had thought of the date. As far as he could tell, they had a good time, but one can never really know. “And?”

 

“And,” she drew out the word, head tilting slightly. “She said she had a great time. Could even hear the smile through the phone.” Her smirk turned into a full-out grin when she saw the pleased look in his eyes.

 

“Well, good. That’s good. Aren’t you supposed to be doing work?”

 

“She’s a nice girl, Alec. Pretty, too-“

 

“Are you seriously about to give me a talk?” he cut her off, with one eyebrow raised.

 

Ellie held out her hands in front of her in an innocent gesture. “No, no. I’m just saying, I can tell how much you like her. Don’t muck it up, yeah?”

 

He was about to respond, when one of the officers showed up behind Ellie. “Sir, Chloe Latimer has just reappeared.”

 

ooo

 

Rose met Alec and Ellie at A&E. They were waiting to be let into Chloe’s room, giving her time with her parents.

 

“So, she just showed up?” Rose asked, looking between the two.

 

Alec nodded. “Said she was wandering around by the clearing. The one by where you were found.”

 

Rose bit her lip, glancing at the door. “That’s not how it was with the other ones. Any idea as to why she was there?”

 

“We’re about to find out.”

 

 Beth and Mark Latimer were just leaving the room. Rose walked up to them with a kind smile. “If it’s all right, we need to ask Chloe some questions. We promise not to upset her, it’s just protocol.”

 

Mark nodded, his arm around his wife. “Yeah, of course. Not too long though, yeah? She needs some sleep.”

 

They walked into the room and Ellie pushed away the curtain surrounding Chloe’s bed. “Chloe?”

 

“Ellie?” She was sitting up in bed, drinking some water. Her eyes darted over Ellie’s shoulder and to Rose.

 

When Ellie caught her gaze, she smiled. “That’s Rose. She’s here for your case, as well as the others. Do you mind if she asks you a few questions?”

 

“What about Hardarse? Don’t need him, right?”

 

Alec cleared his throat. Rose glanced between the two, but decided to leave it be. She put the smile back on and moved closer to Chloe. “It can be just me, if you’d like. Or Ellie, as well.”

 

Chloe nodded vehemently, casting a withering glance in Alec’s direction.

 

Rose nodded and glanced over at Alec with a small shrug. He rolled his eyes, but left. “I’ll go talk to the nurses, see if there’re any similarities to the others.”

 

Once he was gone, Rose went straight into the questioning. “The doctor said that you remembered a bit from your experience. What exactly do you remember?”

 

Chloe shrugged and looked down. “It was like…it kinda reminded me of a hospital, yeah? But not. Maybe more like a…lab.”

 

Rose nodded and Ellie wrote down the information. “Did you notice any people or otherwise?”

 

She shook her head. “Just the room. It was weird, there weren’t any windows. Like, anywhere. It was completely closed off.” She shuddered.

 

“Do you remember anything they did to you in particular?”

 

She shook her head again. “I don’t think they did. It was just…weird. It was like I was alone.”

 

They asked a couple more questions, and then allowed the girl to rest. Alec was waiting outside of the room with his hands on his hips. “Everything in her file looked identical to the others.”

 

Rose nodded and moved closer to him. “She remembers, though. At least, some of it. By her description, I’m guessing some sort of underground base.” She glanced between the two. “I think it’s time for another investigation.”

 

ooo

 

“All right, this,” Rose held up an abnormally large metal detector, “will be able to detect any sort of irregularities in the ground. Namely, bases.” She set the one in her hand down and pulled two more out of the back of her SUV. “I brought one for all of us.”

 

“You just have random things like that back there?”

 

She shrugged. “You’d be surprised, the things we end up needing on a daily basis. So, I figure we can all pick different areas: one person stays in the clearing, the other two go into the woods?”

 

The other two nodded. Rose was slightly surprised at how Alec was allowing her to cast orders, but the fact of the matter was that she was much more skilled in these areas. He had to realize that, as well. “I’m going to go into the woods-“

 

“I’ll go with you.”

 

Rose glanced at Alec and paused, then nodded. “Fine. But,” she turned to Ellie, “make sure to keep your phone on at all times. There’s a very small chance anyone will try anything out in such an open space, especially in the middle of the day, but we can’t ever be too cautious.”

 

After a few more instructions were in place, they all went their respective ways.

 

“So, I’m thinking we go in a little ways, then split off,” Rose said, once they approached the tree line.

 

He looked at her warily. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Rose. You know what happened last time.”

 

“This is different. It’s not like you won’t be arou-“

 

“No, Rose. We’re sticking together.” His expression reminded her so much of the Doctor when he would tell her to _not wander off, Rose_.

 

She stared at him for a moment in contemplation, then sighed. “Fine. We’ll stick together. I’m just saying, we’ll cover more ground if we split up.”

 

They began to walk in. “I’m just not comfortable with that. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

 

She nodded, and then they were silent. Things had gone so well for them last night, so why was this so awkward?

 

It was about a half hour in that the pain began.

 

“Rose?”

 

Rose blinked rapidly, trying to clear away the pounding in her head. “I’m fine. Just a headache.”

 

He put a hand on her shoulder. “Maybe we should take a break. Sit down.”

 

“No, I’m fine. Let’s go.”

 

“ _You are tiny. I can see all of time and space, every single atom of your existence and I divide them._ ”

 

“Rose!”

 

“ _Everything must come to dust. All things. Everything dies.”_

“Ellie, call an ambulance! Something’s wrong with Rose.”

 

“ _The Time War ends._ ”

 

“Rose? Can you hear me? Please say you can hear me.”

 

“ _I bring life._ ”

 

**_The Bad Wolf can control life and death._ **

****

**_The Bad Wolf howls. She shall sing again._ **

****

ooo

 

“Rose? She’s waking up.”

 

When Rose opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was Alec’s face. It was contorted in concern and with a small dash of relief thanks to her awakening. “Alec? What happened?”

 

The bed dipped slightly as he took a seat on the edge, one hand holding hers. “You just…fell. You were convulsing, but the doctors said everything is fine.” He shook his head in irritation. “They say there’s nothing wrong, but they can’t be right. You just dropped! How can there be bloody _nothing?_ ”

 

She squeezed his hand. “Alec, calm down. I feel fine now.” She rubbed circles with her thumb until he relaxed slightly. “How about gettin’ me outta here?”

 

“They said you could leave when you woke up. But, Rose, I really don’t think you should be alone.” He glanced to the side.

 

She bit her lip and stared at him. “I’d really prefer being in my own room. Maybe you can stay with me, if you’re that worried?”

 

He raised his eyebrows.

 

She chuckled. “Just to sleep, Alec. Pretty sure that’s the second time you’ve made that mistake. Mind goin’ places it shouldn’t be?” She took pity on Alec when his face began to turn a delightful shade of red, but her eyes still sparkled. “C’mon, let’s go. I’m starving.”

 

They made quick of checking out and Alec called Ellie to tell her Rose was all right. They picked up some takeaway and then headed back to the hotel.

 

“I can’t believe you can eat those.” Alec motioned toward the bag of vinegar-soaked chips.

 

She popped one in her mouth and smiled. “Don’t know what you’re talking about. They’re gorgeous.” She held one out for him.

 

He scrunched his nose up and shook his head, causing her to laugh. “I’ll stick to my crisps, thanks.”

 

They finished their food and then Rose got dressed in some pajamas and picked out a movie in the television directory, motioning for Alec to join her on the bed.

 

He stood at the edge, rubbing the back of his neck, looking rather uncomfortable. “I, ah, I didn’t really bring anything to sleep over in.”

 

She shrugged. “Just sleep in your pants. It’ll be fine.”

 

He looked reluctant at first, but then nodded. “So, what’re we watching?” He crawled into the bed and unbuttoned his shirt. He decided to keep his trousers on.

 

“They’ve got some old movies in this. Ever seen _Heathers_?”

 

He shook his head.

 

She gave him a tongue-in-teeth smile and selected it. “You’ll like it. It’s a bit messed up, I’ll admit.”

 

“And that means I’ll like it? I’m wondering if I should be offended.”

 

About halfway through the movie, Rose had opted to snuggle up to him, feeling warm and cozy in his embrace. She sighed in contentment as he ran his fingers through her hair. “Alec?”

 

“Hm?”

 

She glanced up at him. “Thanks for staying with me. And for sticking around at hospital.”

 

He shrugged, but she could see a smile beginning to form on his lips. “It’s really no problem, Rose. Just wanted to make sure you’re safe. You’re…”

 

“I’m what?”

 

“I just…I like you. I really like you. Don’t want you keeling over just yet.” He tried to cover his nerves with humor, but it fell flat.

 

“Alec?”

 

“Hm?”

 

She stayed silent until he looked down. She leaned up and pressed her lips lightly to his. “I like you, too.”

 

He smiled against her lips and pulled an arm around her waist, pulling her closer, and deepened the kiss. Cautiously, he ran his tongue along the seam of her lips, and then felt a wave of relief when she opened up.

 

Languid tongues stroked and small hums of content were all that filled the room, but soon Rose could feel herself growing needy. Before she could do anything rash, she pulled away. “Maybe-maybe we should get some sleep, yeah?”

 

He nodded, his eyes closed as he regained his composure. He knew it was much too soon in their relationship – if it was even that – to cross that line, no matter how much he wanted her. “Aye, good idea. Let’s just,” he untangled himself from her and moved to lie down, “yeah. Let’s just do that.”  

 

She lied down next to him, keeping herself a respectable distance, but after turning out the light, she curled back up into him. “Good night.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Done with finals, so back to writing! Time to bring in some new members to the crew. 
> 
> Thanks to my beta, Diomede!

Rose awoke to small kisses being peppered across the length of her neck. She smiled and turned, capturing Alec’s lips for a languid kiss good morning.

 

He hummed contentedly into her mouth. “Morning.”

 

“Morning,” she said in a sleep-ridden voice. She gave him one last quick kiss before crawling out of bed, heading to the bathroom to freshen up. When she reemerged, Alec was dressed and sitting on the bed she figured he must have made. He was looking at her in thought, which made her brow furrow in confusion. “What?”

 

“I-“ he cut himself off and pursed his lips. He took a deep breath, and then continued. “You should really call Torchwood, Rose. They’re bound to have better supplies to take care of you. Or really, just figure out what the bloody hell is wrong with you to begin with.”

 

Rose shook her head with a frown. “No, I’m fine. Dad will just end up sending people out here.”

 

“Rose, this is serious. This is your life potentially at stake.” He stood up and walked over to her with a sigh. He grabbed her hands, his thumbs caressing the backs before continuing. “Please. I just want you safe.”

 

She stared at him for a few moments. Could she deal with the questions that were bound to come after they discover Alec? It was still so soon and it couldn’t help anything progress between the two. She knew they would think she was trying to replace the Doctor with a look-a-like.

 

At the same time, she couldn’t ignore what was happening to her. In all honesty, without the Doctor, Torchwood was her best bet and though she hated to admit it, it was all beginning to frighten her. She gave a defeated sigh. “Fine, I’ll call them. Just…we can’t act like _this_ ,” she motioned down at their hands, “in front of them. They knew him.”

 

He nodded, not asking for further explanation. He let go of her hands so she could reach for her phone.

 

ooo

 

After Rose inevitably recalled her Bad Wolf encounters to Torchwood, Pete was quick to send a team out there. Namely, Mickey and Jake. Though she missed them dearly, she dreaded having to explain Alec, especially now that they’ve began to pursue each other romantically.

 

Rose waited inside her room, messing around with the equipment to occupy herself while she waited for them to arrive. They had gotten rooms themselves, but wanted to check in on her right after they settled in.

 

About an hour and a half later, there was a knock at her door. She took a deep breath and dragged her feet over to the door, pulling it open.

 

“Hey babe.” Mickey grinned at her.

 

She smiled at both men, albeit half-hearted. “Micks!” She hugged him, and then hugged Jake. “How’re things in London? Lost without me?”

 

“You know it.” Mickey winked.

 

Jake motioned to be let into her room, and she obliged. He turned to her. “So, you’ve been seeing Bad Wolf messages?” He frowned. “I don’t know much about it myself, but I’ve been filled in enough. Rose, why didn’t you get in contact right away?”

 

Rose shrugged. “I talked to Pete, but I thought it was too soon to really worry anyone else with it. Now…the thing is, I keep having these flashbacks. At least, that’s what I think they are.” She shrugged. “It would be so much easier if the Doctor were here…” She looked off in the distance, then shook her head to clear it.

 

Jake went over and wrapped an arm around her. “Regardless, it’s nice seeing you again. Been too long.”

 

Rose smiled and hugged him. “You, too.” She turned to Mickey. “How’s mum? And Tony? I’ve talked to them on the phone, but it’s just not the same.”

 

He nodded in understanding. “The same, really. Haven’t missed much, nothing to fret over.”

 

They chatted a little more before getting down to business.

 

“So, I figure it’s time we head to the station. We should meet the people we’re going to be working with, get a feel for them. We also brought some equipment to check you out more thoroughly. Well, Jake will. I’m just the tin dog.” Mickey winked.

 

Rose tried to keep a sigh from leaving her lips. “Aren’t you hungry? We could go to the chippy first.”

 

“Ate on the way here.” Mickey was giving her a skeptical look, and she knew he could tell she was hiding something. “But it’s probably a good idea to check you out first. Need to know if you’ll ever end up dropping into one of these fits of yours unexpectedly.”

 

Jake nodded in agreement and unzipped a bag. It was full of various medical equipment. “Pete wanted us to bring you back to be checked out by Owen, but things are way too risky here right now. This’ll have to do, and if there’s anything threatening I’ll take you back while Mickey stays here.”

 

She simply nodded and sat on the bed, waiting for the two to set up all the equipment. They hooked her up with a variety of wires and tubes connected to different monitors. She watched passively as they worked, her mind consumed by thought of Alec. She had to calm her heart rate before questions were asked, so she used a trick one of the Torchwood psychiatrists taught her.

 

Everything took north of two hours, but there were still no results to be found.

 

“How is that even possible?” Jake ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “Absolutely nothing. Rubbish, this is.”

 

Mickey didn’t say anything, but his jaw was tense and arms folded. After a couple minutes, he spoke up. “Might as well go to the station now, then. Nothing we can do.”

 

Rose blew out a breath and stood. There was no putting it off any longer without suspicion, so she figured it was time to get it over with.

 

ooo

 

“So, word around these parts is that the DI is a bit of a grump. Anything to look out for?” Mickey glanced back at Rose, who was in the back seat, a smirk on his face.

 

She shook her head, forcing a small smile. “He’s really not all that bad. Well, after you get to know him.”

 

Jake laughed from the driver’s seat. “I bet.”

 

Rose rubbed her sweaty palms on her jeans as they pulled into the station parking lot. She had texted Alec to let him know that they were on their way and that he was bound to be asked questions.

 

She was silent as they walked through the doors and back to where Ellie and Alec were. She smiled and stopped the two when they began to pass Ellie’s desk. “This is DS Ellie Miller. She’s on the case as well as the DI.”

 

They all exchanged greetings and handshakes. Ellie tagged along when they continued to Alec’s office. Rose could feel her heart racing as she knocked on the door. “DI Hardy? We’re here,” she shouted through the door, figuring it was best to be formal to keep her distance. She ignored Ellie’s raised eyebrow.

 

There was a muffled ‘come in’ and Rose pushed the door open. She gave him a shaky smile and he offered his own encouraging one. He stood to greet everyone.

 

When Mickey walked through the door, Rose heard him gasp. She could feel his gaze burning into the back of her head, but she refused to turn around.

 

Jake was a little more vocal. “Ah…Hardy, was it? You sure about that?” He glanced at Rose as he shook the man’s hand.

 

“Name I was born with, so pretty sure.”

 

They all went straight into discussing the case, but Rose noticed Mickey keep on glancing her way every few minutes, a frown on his face. She stayed standing next to Ellie, who was farthest from Alec, and focused on the voices as best she could.

 

“If you’d all like, we could grab a bite to eat after checking out the site and look over the files. Help us get better acquainted, as well,” Ellie said kindly, offering Mickey and Jake a smile.

 

Mickey smiled back. “Yeah, sounds good. Rose’s spoken highly of you.”

 

Ellie laughed and patted Rose’s arm. “Sweetheart, this one is.”

 

Rose smiled, still keeping her gaze from Alec. She perked up slightly when he spoke, though.  

 

“Perhaps it would be best if Rose were to stay away from the woods, though. That’s where she had both of her episodes.” Rose cast a look his way, where he was leaning back against his desk with his arms folded.

 

She huffed and rolled her eyes. “I can take care of myself, Alec.” She winced when she used his first name and didn’t miss the raised eyebrow from Mickey.

 

“He’s right, Rose. We don’t want to see you hurt, especially _Alec_.” Mickey kept his gaze firmly on Rose. “I’ll stay with her.”

 

She finally looked straight at Mickey. She knew the look on his face and that there was no negotiating. She sighed and nodded. This would be a long trip.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Please notice the rating change to MATURE. There is sexual content in this chapter. Also, this will be the only chapter of the story with sexual content, in case you're not comfortable with it. Just skip over until the page break after Rose says "I'm sure." if you'd prefer not to read that part.
> 
> And of course, a big thank you to my beta, Diomede!

Rose couldn’t help herself from fidgeting as Mickey and Jake set up coordinates for observation, though she tried to calm herself when she noticed Alec looking at her in concern. This was her problem and she’d be damned if he was caught up in it, Doctor look-a-like or not. She could handle her best friend.

 

They split up not too long after, Alec and Ellie taking to the east, Jake to the north, and Rose and Mickey to the west.

 

“You can’t try and ignore me this whole time, ya know.” Mickey glanced toward Rose as they walked on.

 

She kept silent, her gaze intent on her feet.

 

“Rose.” He grabbed her arm to stop her and forced her to look up at him. “I couldn’t help but notice something. What the hell? Why would you keep that from us?”

 

She looked to the side and crossed her arms. “Yes, I was shocked when I first saw him. But we have a case to solve, so I suggest you suck it up like me.”

 

“That’s not what I’m worried about and you know that.”

 

She swallowed and tapped a finger on her arm in a sign of discomfort. “We’re just working on the case, Micks. That’s all.”

 

“You called him by his first name. And don’t think I didn’t notice the DS’s expression when looking between the two o’ you. This is dangerous ground, Rose.” His eyes held an undercurrent of pity, which spurred Rose on more.

 

She fixed him with a hard look. “You don’t know _anything_ -“

 

“He’s not the Doctor, Rose. The quicker you realize that, the less painful this will be.”

 

Her blood ran cold. Of course, he just thought her some little girl living in a fantasy. He had no idea, no right to come in and criticize her. “ _I know that Mickey_. I don’t expect him to be. Hell, his personality is practically a 180 from the Doctor’s! He shares his face, so what? If you recall, the Doctor didn’t always look like that. It’s what _under_ that counts.”

 

“So, you’re telling me that you still would have pursued this man if he didn’t look like this?” He met her expression with his own critical one.

 

“No one said that I was pursu-“

 

“Oh please, Rose. I think I know you well enough to figure out when you’re fallin’ for someone. I dealt with it for two _years_ , if you don’t remember. Three, if you count the year the git brought you back late.” Mickey thrust his hand out in exasperation.

 

She stared at him, jaw dimpled. “I know he’s not the Doctor, Mickey. That’s all you need to know. Now leave it alone.”  She turned from him and continued to walk on.

 

He sighed and shook his head, but followed her down.

 

oOo

 

When they all got to the small diner up the road after looking through the case files and still lack of evidence in the woods, despite the additions to the team, Rose made a point to sit next to Alec, as if needing to prove that she could handle herself. Maybe if Mickey saw how easy they were around each other, how good Alec was to her, he’d ease up.

 

Alec gave her a quick smile before turning to the whole table. “The only victim that seemed to have any recollection of their time away was Chloe Latimer.”

 

“She was the last one, yeah?”

 

Alec nodded and continued on. “So far as we can tell, that’s the only thing that sets her case apart. Other than that, same story,” he murmured the last part, shaking his head in slight disbelief over the whole thing. “The only lead we really have is this ‘bad wolf’ thing that surrounds Rose. She said you had some experience with it, as well?” He looked to Mickey.

 

Mickey tilted his head side to side. “More jus’ saw it happen to her. I wasn’t there when she apparently went all…” he cut himself off, not sure how much Rose had told them. “Anyway, I only know that it has to do with Rose in particular, and maybe a bit with someone else we know.”

 

“They know about the Doctor.”

 

Mickey looked to Rose in surprise. He hadn’t expected her to speak of him, especially not to this duplicate. He started to wonder if he hadn’t given her enough credit. “Well. All right. Do you think this could be some link to him?”

 

She shook her head. “There’s no way, Mickey. We tried. For _years_.” She continued to shake her head, the movements becoming faster and slightly jerky as she turned to look out the window.

 

Alec grabbed her hand below the table. “I still don’t understand how there can be no evidence on Rose after these episodes of hers.”

 

Jake shrugged. “It could be a possibility that it’s not her, so much as something around her projecting these images, or memories, into her head. Especially if there’s an underground base somewhere out there.”

 

Before they could talk anymore, the waitress came over and took their orders. The rest of dinner was spent in circles, ending up nowhere closer than where they were when the two had shown up.

 

As they were all getting ready to go, Alec pulled Rose aside. “Picked up a bottle of wine at the store when I left yours this morning. Come enjoy it with me tonight?”

 

Rose glanced behind her, but was glad to see that Mickey and Jake were already in the Torchwood vehicle. He was most likely keeping a close eye, though. “I’d love to. Let me just get those two lumps settled in and then I’ll meet you? Just give me your address.”

 

He smiled and nodded. “I’ll text it.” He looked as though he was going to lean in, but after a quick glance over her shoulder, thought better of it. He stepped back with a nod. “See you then.”

 

Rose sighed as she headed back to the guys. She climbed into the car and buckled up, ignoring both of their stares.

 

Jake sighed and glanced back at her after pulling the car out of the parking lot. “C’mon, Rosie-“

 

“Don’t call me that.” She felt bad for her clipped tone, but that name reminded her of Jack, and she really didn’t need any more to think about at the moment. She also knew he would have given a nice lecture along the lines of Mickey’s and she wasn’t in the mood.

 

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence and Rose kept her gaze firmly out the window. She jumped out of the car the moment it was parked in the hotel parking lot. “I’m pretty tired, so I’m going to crash. You guys all set for the night?”

 

They both nodded, looking slightly apprehensive.

 

She planted a smile on her face. “Good. Night, then.” She forced herself to stay at a normal pace; the last thing she needed was for one of them to come knocking in the night.

 

When she made it into the room, she closed the door firmly behind her, and then went about getting ready for a nice night with Alec. No matter what Mickey or Jake said, she knew what she was doing. And all that mattered what that she was _happy_ , for the first time in a long time. She was finally being able to open up again, to love again.

 

She paused, her hand wrapped tightly around a gray v-neck. Love? She knew her feelings for Alec were more than just a passing fancy, but she never thought she’d love again. Yet, the thought mulling through her head, she realized it was true.

 

She swallowed and continued to dress in the shirt and a pair of dark jeans. She hoped this wouldn’t complicate things. They hadn’t even been together for that long. But then again, love didn’t just come about when one was romantically involved, did it? Look at her and the Doctor – there was obvious love, even if they never really _did_ anything about it. Social constructs forced boundaries that weren’t exactly required.

 

She nodded, trying to convince herself of this, and grabbed her keys. Luckily, the boys’ rooms were down another hall, so they most likely wouldn’t hear her leave.

 

oOo

 

“Rose, come in.” Alec smiled and closed the door behind her. He took her coat and set it next to his on the coat rack, then led her to the kitchen. He had already poured two glasses of Cabernet Sauvignon. “I’m into the dries, hope that’s all right.”

 

She smiled and nodded, swirling the wine around a bit and taking a sip. Pete had gotten her into wine, and he always talked about ‘maturing’ her pallet, so she had quickly grown fond of dry wines. “It’s perfect, thanks.”

 

He led her into the living room so they could sit on the couch, where he pulled her against him as they drank. “So, those were two of your friends from Torchwood?”

 

She hummed and nodded, enjoying the slight warmth the wine was providing. “Yeah, two of my best. Sorry if they seemed…well, they both knew the Doctor. It was just a big mess, really.”

 

He chuckled and hugged her closer. “It’s all right, Rose, really. The only opinion that matters is yours.” He kissed the top of her head, which had Rose snuggling further into him.

 

Lazy conversation followed, and soon enough both had empty glasses.

 

“We should do this more often.” She smiled and closed her eyes, setting the glass down on a coaster on the coffee table. She felt the smile on Alec’s lips when he tipped her face up so he could plant a kiss on her lips.

 

Liquid courage drove her on as she turned her head to kiss him more fully. She heard the cling of Alec setting his glass down, and then his arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her more fully against him. She moaned into his mouth and crawled over him so she was straddling him.

 

He pulled away from her mouth when she ground against him, a groan falling from his lips. “Rose…” He gripped her hips and pushed her down.

 

She gasped and sealed her mouth to his, then pulled back and nipped at his lower lip. “I think…” She faltered when he began to lavish her neck in lingering light kisses. “I think we should go to the bedroom.”

 

He paused and pulled back, looking her in the eyes. “You sure?” She nodded vehemently and leaned down to kiss him again.

 

She leveled her gaze with his, a different kind of warmth filling her. One full of lust and love for this man before her. “I’m sure.”

 

He brought her mouth back to his in an instant, thrusting his tongue in her mouth. He moved his hands down to her thighs, and then under them, to be able to get her to wrap her legs around his waist as he stood. He stumbled slightly when trying to get around the couch, though, which forced Rose to hop down.

 

She giggled and steadied them both, then grabbed his hand. “Lead me.”

 

He smiled bashfully and led her up the stairs to his room. Once inside, he let go of her hand and closed the door slowly behind him. Moonlight streamed through the window, cascading the room in white light.

 

She bounced onto the bed, watching him as he positioned himself between her legs, which were hanging off of the side of the bed. Her heart was pounding, from nerves and excitement.

 

He leaned down and kissed her, deep and slow. After a few moments, he let his weight lead him down on top of her.

 

She moved back so he could climb on more fully, pushing until she was lying on the pillows. She sighed as he kissed his way up her body, latching onto her neck once again. She brought her hands up to run through his hair as he sucked. “Oh, Alec, right there.” She wrapped her legs around him, pushing him right where she needs him. “Please, now.”

 

He nodded against her neck and sat up. He pulled off his shirt, eyes focused on her as she worked on her own, and then unbuttoned his trousers. He stopped, not wanting to get off the bed and miss anything while she was unlatching her bra. His eyes glazed over when she pulled it away, and he allowed himself to look her over fully. When he met her eyes again, he smiled and leaned back down, giving her one quick kiss before sliding off the bed.

 

As Alec worked on his own pants, Rose shimmied out of hers. Lust was weighing heavily in both of them and they knew there would be no building up to it tonight. They needed each other more than anything at that very moment.

 

She reached out for him after giving him a once over. He grabbed her hand, but bent over to open the bedside table to pull out a condom. He grinned. “Can’t forget this. Lucky I have enough mind to remember.”

 

She couldn’t help but grin back, just the sight of him alone causing wetness to pool between her legs. She rubbed her thighs together for some relief, but then he was there, settling between them. She looked down and noticed he had already sheathed himself. She lied back down and spread her legs farther apart so he could settle comfortably on top of her.

 

He paused to stroke her cheek. Before he moves forward, he searches her eyes for one last sign of consent.

 

She nodded, and then pulled him down for a kiss. She bucked her hips up into him, urging him on.

 

He pulled back and looked down to position himself at her entrance. She closed her eyes as he pushed forward. At first, she felt a deep ache at being stretched, but he gave her time to adjust.

 

It wasn’t long before he was rocking into her faster, their breaths mingling in exertion. “Rose…I don’t think…” Alec could feel himself closing in on the edge. He was hardly up to par after how long he’s gone without this.

 

She pants out, “It’s all right. Let go. It’s okay.” She urged him to move at the pace he needed, and soon he was shuddering on top of her with a few quick, jerky thrusts. He collapsed on her and she smoothed his hair down as his breathing became steady as he nuzzled her shoulder.

 

He moved off of her and took the condom off, throwing it in the trash next to the bed. He glanced over at her, whom was still writhing in need. She was reaching a hand down, when he pushed it away and moved down so he was level with her center. “Let me.”

 

She gasped when he ran the flat of his tongue across her slit. She ran her fingers through his hair and directed him up to her clit. “There. Suck there.” She moaned loudly when he obliged, and murmured a few curse words when he thrust in fingers.

 

She forgot how good this could be, his mouth hot and wet on her, and it was driving her closer to the edge by the second. She couldn’t help but buck her hips and felt slight embarrassment, which didn’t last too long, the feeling of deep pleasure overriding every emotion she could even begin to feel at the moment.

 

She was gasping and moaning under him louder than she ever remembered before.

 

It wasn’t long before she came undone under him, and soon they were both cuddled together under the blankets, falling into peaceful sleep.

 

oOo

 

Rose awoke with a start. She glanced over and was relieved to see Alec sleeping soundly beside her, and decided some water would help cool her clammy skin.

 

She slowly crawled out of bed, so as not to disturb him, and grabbed his shirt and her knickers for some modesty as she walked down to the kitchen. She drank her water and put the glass in the sink.

 

 

She gasped and looked around. No one was there, but then she didn’t expect there to be. The voice was insider her head.

 

**_The Bad Wolf will be ours_.**

“No no no no.” Her head felt like it was on fire and she fell to the ground.

 

**_Bad Wolf Bad Wolf Bad Wolf_ **

 

She was crawling now, she didn’t know where. She knew she had passed through doors and at one point had stood and ran.

 

“You’re ours.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time for the plot to thicken!
> 
> As always, a big thank you to my Beta Diomede! She's a huge help :)

Alec woke up slowly, feeling more content than he had in ages. He stretched out, and then turned to cuddle up to Rose. His eyes opened in confusion when his arm reached bare sheets. He sat up and looked around the room. “Rose?”

 

The bathroom door was open and empty. He was slightly worried that things had moved too fast for her and she fled, but calmed when he noticed her clothes still strewn across the floor and his missing shirt. He smiled, thinking about her walking around with knickers and his oxford, and got out of the bed. He searched through his drawers for a pair of pajama pants and then headed down the stairs.

 

“Rose, you down here?” He checked the living room, but there was no sign. The kitchen was empty as well, and he was starting to worry. His stomach dropped when he noticed the front door ajar. He rushed over to it and threw it open and his worry only increased when he noticed her car was still there.

 

“Shit.”

 

He ran back in the house and went in the kitchen to grab his phone, dialing Ellie’s number.

 

“ _Alec? What the hell are you doing, calling at this hour?_ ”

 

“Rose is missing.” He felt himself begin to panic once he voiced this.

 

“ _What are you talking about? Were we supposed to meet at the station this morning?_ ”

 

Alec scratched the back of his head and grimaced. “Ah…”

 

“ _She stayed over, didn’t she? I just **knew** this would happen._ ” It was obvious she was grinning by the tone of her voice. When he didn’t respond, her voice turned compassionate. “ _Don’t worry too much, Alec. I’m sure she just went back to the hotel._ ”

 

He shook his head as if she could see him. “No! Her car is still here, as well as her clothes and the front door was left open. Something happened.”

 

“… _Get down to the station. I’ll contact her friends._ ”

 

He hung up the phone without so much as a goodbye and ran upstairs to throw on a clean shirt and tie, and then was out the door.

 

OoO

 

“Ugh…” Rose woke up slowly and she went to move a hand to her pounding head. Confusion swept over her when nothing happened. She blinked her eyes open, then shut them quickly when she was blinded by a bright light.

 

“Miss Tyler, you’re awake.”

 

Rose slowly opened one eye and then the other. Her vision was blurry for a moment, but soon came into focus. The first thing she noticed was the restraints around her arms and legs. The second, a woman standing at the end of the bed.

 

She had short blonde hair and icy blue eyes, her gaze dark. She looked to be in at least her forties and was wearing a bland gray suit.

 

The first instinct was for Rose to try and get free of the restraints, but years of training made her ignore it and stare the woman straight on. Refusing to show any fear, Rose questioned “Who are you?”

 

The woman gave Rose a cold smile. “I think the better question is who are you? Or more so, _what_?” She moved around the bed, stopping at Rose’s side. “We’ve been watching you for a very long time now.”

 

“You’re the one that was taking all the people. Why?”

 

The woman laughed. “I hardly think you’re in a position to question _me_ , Miss Tyler.”

 

Rose clenched her fists and turned from the woman to take in her surroundings. The room was a sterile white and there was a steel door off to the side. It was what was next to it that made her blood run cold.

 

There was a long metal table and though she was too low to see everything on it, she was able to make out a scalpel and drill. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know what else resided there.

 

She swallowed and turned back to the woman, unable to stop a shiver that passed through her. “Could you at least tell me your name?”

 

The woman stared down at her for a few moments. “Very well. You may call me Ingrid.” Ingrid bent down to Rose’s level, her eyes narrowed. “I am part of a very prestigious organization, here to better our world.”

 

Rose snorted. “I’ve heard that before.” She thought back to Yvonne and her ‘for the good of the British Empire’. She wasn’t too fond of that outcome.

 

Ingrid talked on, completely ignoring Rose’s statement. “You, my dear, are a little power vessel. You see, we have technology that far advances your little Torchwood. Things your humans have never seen before, and never will.”

 

It finally hit Rose that the betterment of the world was not Earth. This woman was not human.

 

“You reek of time itself, so much energy trapped in that fleshy brain of yours.” She grinned sinisterly at Rose. “The Bad Wolf shall rise again.”

 

“I don’t know what that is.”

 

Ingrid growled and stood back up. “Don’t lie to me, little girl. We know you. The valiant child from another universe.” She leaned in close to Rose’s face. “We’ll siphon that power right out of you. Suck you dry.”

 

Rose swallowed, but refused to back down. “Whatever you think you’ve found, you’re wrong. It was taken out of me.”

 

“If that were true, we wouldn’t have been able to tap into those memories of yours.” Ingrid moved to the door, not giving Rose another glance. “Now, it’s time for you to meet our absolute _best_ doctor, Dr. Gustov.”

 

A graying man walked into the room with a calming smile on his face. “Hello, Rose. I’ll be the one conducting the experiments.”

 

She thought maybe she had a chance with this man, as she had been known for her powers of persuasion. Her hopes were quickly dashed when he carefully selected a pick, nearly twelve inches long.

 

OoO

 

Alec was at the station in record time. The moment he was through the doors he was sending officers on lookouts.

 

It didn’t take long for Ellie, Mickey, and Jake to make it. They all hurried to Alec’s office where he was trying to track Rose’s cell phone.

 

“Fuck!” he sighed in irritation as he ran his fingers through his hair. “It’s at my place. It was a long shot anyway.”

 

Mickey raised an eyebrow. “ _What’s_ at your house?”

 

Alec glanced up at him, and then back at his computer. “Her mobile. We need to go back to the woods, it’s our best bet.” He was already headed to the door, the others following close behind.

 

Mickey caught up with him. “Why is her mobile at your place?”

 

“She stayed over last night.”

 

Mickey decided it was best to bite his tongue; they had more important matters at hand. “Have you already sent out other coppers?” He leveled a glare at Alec.

 

Alec gave a curt nod. He hurried to his police car. “We should drive together. Everyone, get in.”

 

OoO

 

Rose’s throat was raw from screaming. It wasn’t long before she had lost her cool, with Dr. Gustov poking around at her brain without any form of anesthetic. He had raised the bed so she was sitting upright to perform better.

 

She was shaking and her body was covered in sweat. She could feel herself going into shock to deal with the pain he had inflicted. She knew it was far from over, so relief filled her at this fact.

 

“Now, now dear. Moving your head around will just make it worse.” He grabbed his drill and drilled a small hole in the side of head, burrowing into her skull. She let out a silent scream, her body tensing up.

 

She bit her lip until blood was running down her chin. She could feel slick warmth cascading over her ear and pooling on her shoulder. Hot tears were pouring against her will.

 

“You’ll feel a bit of a poke.”

 

It was more than a poke she felt as he stuck the pick into the hole. She whimpered, too worn for anything else.

 

Suddenly, he was moving away from her, holding the pick steady in his hand. “Just a small sample. That will be all for the day, time for you to get some rest.” He moved over to the table and scraped something onto what Rose figured was a microscope slide and then he was moving back over to her with a needle.

 

He moved the bed back down and injected whatever was in the syringe into her arm. Soon everything turned black.

 

OoO

 

“We need to split up. Everyone goes into the woods, this underground base has to be in there. It _has_ to.”

 

Ellie set a hand on Alec’s shoulder. “Alec, I know you’re worried, but you need to calm down a bit. It won’t help her if you’re frantic,” she spoke softly.

 

He swallowed and nodded.

 

“I’ll call Torchwood; we’ll need something stronger than those.” Jake nodded to the same device Rose had handed Alec and Ellie the last time they had investigated. He moved away from the group, pulling out his cell phone.

 

“Let’s go.” Mickey motioned for everyone to head out. “I’ll head to the right. Maybe you two should stick together.

 

Alec was about to object, but Ellie cut him off. “Probably for the best.” She glanced at Alec. “C’mon, let’s get to work.”

 

They all walked on, splitting once they made it to the tree line. A few minutes in, Ellie stopped Alec. He turned to her with a furrowed brow and she offered a small smile. “We’ll find her, Alec, no matter what it takes. I promise.”

 

He searched her face. His expression turned grim and he continued forward. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Miller.”


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yes, the next chapter already. We're nearing the end!
> 
> As always, a big thank you to my beta Diomede.

Rose felt as if she was having an out of body experience while Dr. Gustov worked on her. She used every ounce of training she had ever had to distance herself from the pain, but it could only go so far. She tried to move her muscles as much as possible in the restraints to ward off cramping, but she knew if she were here much longer she’d be dealing with atrophy.

 

There were also brain exercises to take her mind off the pain, but all of the messing around the doctor has done was causing her to draw a blank in this category. This was rather upsetting, since she could feel the shock wearing off from the lack of torture.

 

She had been trapped for what she figured was two days, based on her sleep cycle. No one had come to her at all yesterday, but she wasn’t sure the solitude was any better. She moved her neck side to side. She really wished that would have at least given her a pillow for these minor annoyances that seemed to scream out at her due to her situation.

 

To pass the time, she began to name all of the planets and galaxies she had been to with the Doctor. There were enough to preoccupy her for hours. She startled when the door was banged open and Dr. Gustov walked through the door. She couldn’t help a shiver that passed through her.

 

He smiled the same kind smile he always gave her. “It’s time to go a different route.”

 

She then noticed that he was dragging a cart behind him with a monitor and multiple wires hanging from it. What worried her were the small neurodiagnostic needles at the end of each of those wires.

 

“This is almost like a more advanced form of an EEG. Your brain sample did not offer too much help, so we obviously need to try something new.” He moved to her side and turned the cart to be flush against the bed. He raised the bed again to make her upright. “I’m positive you are familiar with EEGs, so I don’t expect to have to explain what will happen.”

 

She simply stared at him, willing her face void of emotion. The only thing that gave her away was the staccato spasms wracking her body.

 

He worked in silence as he stuck the needles in random spots around her head, Rose subtly flinching with every one. After, he rubbed his hands together, delighting in his own nervous tension, and turned on the machine. “Let’s see what we get.”

 

Once he was done, he studied the results on the small screen with narrowed eyes. “Interesting. Your brain waves are much more prominent than that of a normal human. It’s almost as if you have stronger neurotransmitters than should be possible. One would think your body would collapse under the stress it should put on your body.”

 

She tried to peek at the screen, but the doctor was in the way. It could also be easily blamed on her blurred vision from tears she refused to let fall, but she tried to keep away from this line of thought.

 

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then turned to her. “Perhaps we have been going about this the wrong way. It’s your DNA we should be checking out.” He moved to the table and opened a glass jar full of Q-tips and pulled one out. He moved back over to her. “Open wide.”

 

She didn’t move to do as he asked, so he gripped her jaw and forced her mouth open, causing a small whimper to fall from her lips.  

 

He went over to the table once again and picked up a small bag, something she was used to seeing at police stations. “I shall be back shortly.”

 

OoO

 

Alec gripped the side of the dresser in Mickey’s hotel room. They were all there for Jake and Mickey to modify the Torchwood equipment in one last attempt to scrounge up some evidence. “It’s been two blood days and we’re nowhere closer to finding her! I thought you were supposed to be good at this.”

 

Ellie shot him a warning look.

 

Mickey growled and stopped what he was doing to glare at the man. “What the hell do you think I’m doing? Hate to break it to ya, but I’ve been there for her a lot longer than you. Don’t think you’re the only one worried here.”

 

Alec gritted his teeth. “You may have been here longer, but I-“ He cut himself off. There was no way he was going to admit the depth of his feelings to this man. It wasn’t long after Rose went missing that he realized how much he really cared for her.

 

Mickey shook his head and turned back to his work. “I’m not going to fight with you about this. You have _no idea_.”

 

Alec scoffed. “No idea? About what, exactly? Because I know quite a lot about her.”

 

Mickey slammed his hand against the desk he was working on and turned back to Alec. “Oh, really? You realize that she’s probably only with you because you look like _him-_ “

 

“Enough!”

 

They all turned to Jake, who had his eyes narrowed at both men. “This is getting us nowhere. Now stop bitching and get back to work.”

 

Mickey’s jaw tensed and Alec grumbled to himself, but they paid heed.

 

Ellie walked over cautiously to Alec. “There’s still time. The rest of the people that went missing came out fine.”

 

Alec shook his head, turning back to the dresser. “It’s obvious that was a trap. They need her for something.”

 

“Which means they’ll keep her around.” She leaned forward to catch his eye. “ _We will find her_.”

 

He stared at her for a moment, then nodded.

 

OoO

 

Dr. Gustov was true to his word, coming back within the hour. Instead of his usual kind smile, he was grinning broadly. “I have some good news, Miss Tyler.”

 

She blinked in slight confusion. Usually he referred to her as Rose; she presumed to set a false pretense of informality. At this point she couldn’t care less about what he found, but curiosity won out. She refused to speak, but stared at him expectantly.

 

He moved over to her side and leaned down. “We found something quite extraordinary. It’s surprising no one else has found this in you since I’m sure you’ve had DNA samples taken before, working for Torchwood. Then again, the changes could have become apparent due to my…experimentations.”

 

She snorted.

 

He ignored it and continued on. “You see, there was an extra strand. That was quite surprising, but not what completely caught my attention.” He leaned in even closer, to the point where Rose could feel his breath on her face. “There was a golden mist around that tiny strand. Quite interesting indeed.”

 

She bit her lip. What could that mean?

 

He pushed away and began to pace. “The odd thing is how weak it seemed. Almost as if it is waiting to be activated.” A grin slowly spread across his face. “Which is what we must do.”

 

Rose swallowed and closed her eyes. The lack of torture she had gone through had begun to offset the shock. She knew that soon she would be able to feel the aftereffects of what she had gone through so far. She opened her eyes and blew out a breath to calm herself. The glimmer in his eyes brought her to the realization that it would only get worse, and now she was praying for the solitude she had taken for granted only hours before.

 

Dr. Gustov went over to the table and picked up something akin to a silver halo and the drill. He then chose two screws, which caused Rose to look away from him. “This is a neuro-activational concentrator. It should allow me to concentrate that energy inside of you to bring forth exactly what we need.”

 

Rose tensed to prepare herself as he drew closer, silent tears falling from her eyes in a mixture of exhaustion and resignation.

 

OoO

 

“ _I expect you to make progress, Mickey. Right now Jacks thinks Rose is too busy with the case for her nightly calls, but that can only happen so long. You know what trouble we’ll all be in if she finds out the truth.”_

Mickey shuddered and rubbed his cheek at Pete’s words. “We’re really trying Pete, but there’s not much we can do without some more equipment.

 

“ _I’ll send someone down there with some things.”_ There was a pause. “ _Just…try your hardest. Please._ ”

 

Mickey took a deep breath. “You know I will.”

 

Mickey pressed the end button on his phone and turned to the group. They were all back near the forest to try searching again. “Someone is coming over to bring some more search equipment. They should be here in a few hours.”

 

Alec nodded, his arms crossed. He had been able to calm himself down after they left the hotel. “So, back to searching until they get here, aye?”

 

Mickey nodded. “Same groups?”

 

Alec nodded back. They all moved there respective ways. Mickey had managed to tweak the metal detectors to become a bit more sensitive while they had been back at the hotel. He and Ellie moved farther out than they had the last times they were out searching. “I don’t understand how there can be nothing. They have to have someway to get out of that base of theirs.” He shook his head and huffed.

 

Ellie sighed and shrugged. “I honestly don’t know. All we can do is keep trying. We might have better luck with these things.” She lifted her device a minuscule amount.

 

Alec swallowed hard, trying to muster up at least a small amount of hope. They continued on in silence.

 

OoO

 

Rose’s breaths were shaky as her head throbbed. Dr. Gustov had screwed the circular item in place near her temples. Electrical currents were shooting from it into her head.

 

The doctor looked on in interest. He stared at her hungrily, willing his latest experiment to work.

 

Rose predicted it was about two hours in when she began to feel a warmth building up throughout her body. It seemed to increase by the second until she felt as though she was burning from the inside out.

 

Her body convulsed and her back arched, flickers of gold showing in her eyes. “No!” she cried out, tears streaming down her face. She could feel herself pulling away, hiding inside herself as something began to push forward. It somewhat reminded her of when she was possessed by Cassandra, but infinitely more powerful.

 

She growled and jerked forward, glaring at Dr. Gustov. “You have no idea what you’re doing! What power you’re dealing with!”

 

He merely smiled. “That will be for us to decide.” He pulled a small device from his pocket and spoke excitedly into it. Ingrid soon walked through the door. When she caught sight of Rose, intrigue lit up in her eyes.

 

Rose fought against the restraints and let out strangled cries. “I can’t I can’t I can’t. Please…” She sobbed as bright gold encased her.

 

The Bad Wolf had risen.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time for some fun with Bad Wolf!
> 
> As always, a bit thank you to my beta Diomede :)

After the golden explosion that was Rose faded, the Bad Wolf opened her eyes and surveyed the room.

 

Ingrid and Dr. Gustov looked on with expressions of wonder and greed.

 

Bad Wolf’s eyes landed on the two, her eyes narrowing slightly as she tilted her head to the side. Within seconds her binds were turned into gold dust.

 

Wondrous eyes soon turned fearful as Bad Wolf slowly got out of the bed with inhuman grace. She glided up to them, staring at them as if she were considering their worth. When she spoke, her voice rang out in two harmonic tones. “You call upon what is not yours.”

 

Her eyes flashed gold and every instrument in the room turned into the same dust as her restraints. The other two were powerless before her.

 

Ingrid took a few cautious steps toward her, her hands held out in front of her, palms up. She was soon realizing that she may have been out of her league, as they now had no way of simply siphoning the power inside. “We brought you back. Your power could help our civilization greatly.”

 

Her eyes flashed again and suddenly the two were held high up the wall by an invisible force. Bad Wolf gave them a look soaked in pitiful apathy and before they could even comprehend her movement, she was out the door.

 

Once she had left, they fell to the ground in heaps, looking at each other with barely masked fear.

 

oOo

 

Leaves crunched under Alec’s shoes as he stomped around the woods, eyes trained to the ground. “Absolutely bloody _nothing_. I thought the updates were supposed to help.”

 

Ellie glanced at him from her own search. “Once they come with more equipment, we’re bound to find something.”

 

“You’re optimism is moving.”

 

She rolled her eyes but did not comment, knowing that he was snapping out of worry. She hoped to God that they would find Rose, not only because the girl in question was her friend, but because that girl made Alec better. She wasn’t sure what would happen to him if they come up empty handed. He had already lost so much.

 

Alec’s phone rang. He shoved a hand in his pocket and pulled it out, looking at the caller ID. “It’s Smith.” A tinge of hope was visible in his eyes in hope that they found something. He accepted the call and held it to his ear. “Hardy.”

 

“ _The equipment will be here within the hour. We should regroup._ ”

 

Alec felt his hopes be dashed, but he quickly pushed it down. “Aye. Near the tree line?”

 

“ _Yeah. See ya there.”_

 

The phone beeped when Mickey hung up and Alec put it back in his pocket. He turned to Ellie. “We’re going to meet back up; the equipment will be here soon.”

 

They began the journey back to the entrance of the forest. When they got there, Mickey and Jake were already waiting.

 

Alec walked straight up to them, asking, “Did you find anything?”

 

“I found some readings over to the far right, but couldn’t find any sort of signs of entrance. The stuff that’s comin’ will be able to hone in better,” Mickey said in a strictly professional voice.

 

Alec sniffed and nodded, then turned around to stand by Ellie’s side again. He’d rather distance himself from Mickey, considering the high stakes still putting both on edge. Fighting would just hinder their search.

 

They all began their way back to the car to wait.

 

oOo

 

Guards rushed at Bad Wolf every which way. It was no issue for her; a quick flick of her wrist and all in her way unconsciously dropped to the floor. She disinterestedly looked down upon the slumbering guards and continued on her path.

 

There was something pulling her straight ahead. She couldn’t quite distinguish it, but a half mile ahead its siren song called to her. She managed to make it to the room in record time, seeming to disappear and reappear where she craved to be within seconds.

 

She could feel the energy radiating from behind the closed door in front of her, the time vortex calling to her, caressing every inch of her body. The door disintegrated with another quick wave and she slid inside. The room brightly lit and full of vegetation, but her focus was on the tiny glowing TARDIS coral in the middle.

 

For the first time since the whole debacle started, she smiled. She walked over to the barely-grown TARDIS, kneeled before it and picked it up in reverence. She stroked it gently and cooed, “I will take care of you now.”

 

oOo

 

The SUV pulled up about thirty minutes later and all four perked up. Mickey and Jake rushed over to the vehicle to greet the newcomer. They dove for the equipment when the hatchback was opened.

 

Alec and Ellie moved to join them after quickly assessing the situation. The objects pulled out were similar to what they had been using, but with more sensory probes that no amount of modifying to compete with. The ends lit up blue and they gave off high pitched rings.

 

Jake nodded to the newest addition. “This is Toshiko Sato. One of our best.”

 

Tosh smiled politely. “I do what I need to.” She moved to shake both Alec and Ellie’s hands as they introduced themselves.

 

“So, should we head back out to the woods?”

 

Alec paused for a moment with his eyes narrowed in contemplation. “Actually…well, as I was out there I had a thought.” Ellie furrowed her brow in confusion. He hadn’t said anything to her while they were searching.

 

Mickey turned to him with crossed arms. “And what thought did you have exactly, Inspector?”

 

Alec ignored the slightly condescending tone in Alec’s voice. “If you remember the case files, many victims were found on the beach. Specifically near the cliffs. I thought Ellie and I could check out the area while you three stay here.”

 

Mickey stared at him, thinking it over. He then nodded. “All right, couldn’t hurt.” He nodded to a couple of the instruments. “Take those and head out. We’ll catch a ride with Tosh when we’re done here.”

 

oOo

 

Bad Wolf continued on down the hall, the TARDIS coral tucked snugly in the breast pocket of her white hospital gown. After a few minor inconveniences in the form of ephemerals, she had the base to herself.

 

That was, until Ingrid came back.

 

“You have no right to exercise control over us. We were the ones to bring you forth and you shall do our bidding. Your power will overthrow the Ataxi empire and make _me_ queen.”

 

The voice came from behind Bad Wolf, making her turn around slowly. She regarded the woman with only slight interest, her eyes the normal hazel. She began to advance on her slowly. “Such a tiny specimen you are. I am confused as to why you believe you may exercise said control over me.”

 

Ingrid gasped as she was forced to her knees.

 

Bad Wolf stared down at her coldly. “You have caused unnecessary pain to this town and for that you must be punished.”

 

Ingrid began to shake in undisguised fear. “Please don’t kill me. I’m sorry. _Please_.”

 

Bad Wolf cocked her head. “Why do you believe I will condemn you to death?”

 

Ingrid stared up at her and shook her head, not sure how to answer. She could voice the actions of the previous days, the torture Rose had gone through, but she did not want to aggravate this woman – _this_ _being_ – in front of her.

 

Bad Wolf took a deep breath and leaned over to peer into Ingrid’s eyes. “Death shall not befall any person unless necessary, but I see in your head. Your hunger for power far outweighs any redeeming qualities.” She pressed two fingers to Ingrid’s head and the woman crumpled to the floor, left brain dead.

 

She stepped over the body without any sign of remorse and continued forth. She stopped not too far after, ear cocked as if listening to something above her.

 

 _Doctor_.

 

No, not the Doctor. Those sounds were Alec Hardy, the man with her love’s face. She must protect him and then her job will be done.

 

A large square in the ceiling began to glow gold until the area vanished completely.

 

oOo

 

Alec’s jacket blew in the wind from the top of the cliffs, as Ellie had elected to search near the shore.

 

His eyes squinted in the lowering sunlight as he looked out at the sea unseeing. He was trying to formulate the best route for scouting the area and soon figured it was best to start from the outside in. He moved from the edge and turned on the device, then began his trek.

 

He definitely didn’t expect it to go off right away.

 

 

He looked around the dirt ground frantically, trying to find any small indication of a door. Soon after he realized his best bet was to call Ellie up. He fumbled for his phone, but in his haste he dropped it to the floor. He grumbled and bent down to pick it up.

 

That was when the area around him turned gold. His eyes widened as he looked around himself, completely baffled. Before he knew it, he was falling.

 

When he hit the floor below, it didn’t feel as hard as it should have, almost as if there was an invisible cushion below him. After assessing that there was no damage to his person, he looked up.

 

The sight before him almost made his heart stop.

 

oOo

 

Ellie sighed as she found about as much evidence, or lack thereof, as in the forest. She decided to call Alec and meet back up to set up another plan. The phone rang until it went to voicemail, which confused her profusely. She knew he had his phone on him and would have been waiting for her call. Her stomach plummeted as her mind ran away from her, traveling to the darkest corners.

 

She hurried up toward the top of the beach to make her way onto the cliffs. They weren’t too vast, so it wasn’t long before she found the large hole. She looked down to see Alec standing below, but what really caught her attention was the golden woman in front of him. Her breath increased as fear and confusion took over. “Alec!”

 

He either didn’t hear or didn’t care, because there was no response. Not even a glance up.

 

She pulled out her phone with shaky hands and quickly dialed Mickey’s number. There was no way she could get down there on her own. The drop would surely cause broken bones.

 

“ _DS Miller, find something out there?_ ”

 

Her voice caught in her throat. She tried again. “There’s…get here quick. And bring a rope ladder.”

 

oOo

 

Alec stood slowly, his eyes fixed on Rose. She was shaking violently, an invisible wind blowing her hair and gown. Her irises were bright gold, not unlike what Alec had seen seconds ago on the cliff. Alec’s breaths were choppy and eyes wide, not sure what to make of the sight before him. Was this what she meant by the whole Bad Wolf debacle? Is this what she looked like then?

 

He thought he heard a voice above, but did not dare turn from the sight.

 

“Alec…” Her voice was now her own without any form of undertone. The emotionless mask from earlier had turned to cold fear. The ethereal glowing of her eyes remained, if dulled.

 

His heart broke at the tears streaming down her face. He took a few steps closer and held out a hand. “Rose, what’s happening to you? I don’t…what’s happening?” He wanted to help her, but he was still having trouble wrapping his head around the whole scenario playing out in front of him.

 

“It hurts,” Rose choked out. A whimper came from her throat and she collapsed.

 

“Rose!” Alec lunged forward, catching her just on time. The wind had left and her eyes were now stained with an undertone of the earlier gold.

 

She stared up at him through glassy eyes. “It burns. I can’t make it stop.” Her voice was low, as if she had drained all energy. “It’s killing me.”

 

Alec could feel stubborn tears fill his eyes, but he refused to let them fall. He had to stay strong for her. “Tell me how to help you Rose.”

 

She didn’t answer him, but turned to stare at his chest. Her eyes brightened momentarily and she placed a hand on his chest, over his heart.

 

Alec couldn’t help a gasp leaving his lips as an odd sensation ran through him. He patted the left side of his chest frantically, mind full of wonder at the lack of a bump. “What did you do?”

 

A weak smile filled her face, eyes unfocused. “I healed you.”

 

Finally the tears fell. He held her closer. “Well then tell me how to heal you. Please, Rose. How do I fix this?”

 

She moved her eyes slowly up to his face, her expression resigned. “You can’t.”

 

“Don’t say that!”

 

She smiled again and raised a hand to his face, wiping away the tears. “My mind is burning. The only one that can help is the Doctor.”

 

Alec was frantic now. His mind was racing, trying to find the answer. “Then tell me how to get him here!”

 

“Impossible.”

 

He shook his head vehemently, tears falling like tiny waterfalls. “No, we’ll find a way. You’ll be okay.”

 

She took in a shaky breath and nuzzled his chest. “I’m sorry.”

 

He put a hand on her cheek and forced her to face him. “Please, there _has_ to be some way for me to help you. You’ve helped me so much, Rose. So much. Let me return the favor.”

 

She closed her eyes, her complexion paling. “I’m sorry.”

 

“Rose?” He shook her shoulders lightly, trying to get her to open her eyes. “Rose!” He shook her harder. She was growing cold beneath him, but he refused to check for a pulse. He could not give in; could not believe her dead. “No, please.” He let his face fall to her shoulder. “Please, I love you, please.”

 

She did not respond, and when he nuzzled the spot between her neck and shoulder, no pulse could be felt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only one chapter to go after this, then on to a sequel.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This last chapter is going to be split into two, so there will be one more for this story. I'll most likely post the next one tonight. 
> 
> Thanks to my beta, Diomede!

Rose woke slowly, feeling brand new. The first sight she was hit with was a plain white ceiling. 

 

“Oh, you’re awake.”

 

Her eyes widened and she turned her head to the right. Alec was sitting in a plastic chair by the bed she was on, gripping her hand. When he noticed she was awake, relief washed over him. “I…what happened?”

 

Alec sucked in a shaky breath as he shook his head and shrugged. “I don’t really know, even now. I thought you were…” He closed his eyes momentarily and took a deep breath. “Anyway, suddenly you were engulfed in that odd gold light and you were breathing again. But you were changed, I could just tell. It was as if whatever it was left a mark on you.”

 

She furrowed her brow in confusion. She forced herself to go over any memory she could grasp, and then her expression turned into one of understanding. “Bad Wolf.”

 

He nodded, squeezing her hand once. “Also, I found this in your pocket. It began to pulse with light when you started breathing” He pulled out the piece of TARDIS coral.

 

Rose’s eyes widened. “Is that?...”

 

He shrugged. “I couldn’t tell you what it is, Rose. Just that it could have been a part of your healing.”

 

She shook her head and took it from him. “It looks like the inside of the TARDIS. The ship the Doctor and I traveled in.”

 

He cleared his throat and glanced toward the door without a response to her statement. Instead he said, “We’re at Torchwood.” He chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. “Never seen a place like this in my life. A bit overwhelming at first.”

 

She shrugged. “You get used to it.” She looked around. “Where’re Mickey and the others?”

 

“Out on some sort of mission. Didn’t ask; wasn’t sure I wanted to know, truthfully. Ellie has the kids, so I’ve been updating her through mobile.”

 

She smiled. “No, you probably don’t want to know. And hope the kids are doin’ well.”

 

He turned back to her and smiled back. He held her gaze for several moments and his smile slowly died. “Rose…they performed tests on you. They revealed certain things; I’m not quite sure what all of it meant, but you need to know-“

 

“Ah, Rose, you’re awake.” Dr. Owen Harper walked through the door, glancing down at a clipboard in his hand. “We’ve got some things to go over. Best to do it now.”

 

Alec gave him a reproachful look – he didn’t think he would meet a man with less social skills than him, but Owen seemed to earn that title. To be fair, he was warned. It was slightly ironic, considering most people warn others about him.

 

Rose began to sit up. She glanced at Alec when he helped her up. “I’m actually feeling great. Don’t need help.”

 

He looked hesitant, and then ignored her protest as he braced her back while she rose.

 

She was slightly confused by his demeanor. Ever since she woke up he had had a melancholic air surrounding him.

 

Owen cleared his throat to gain her attention. “I ran every test I could think of considering you’re unique situation. There are drastic changes in your DNA. An extra strand, much more prominent than your normal makeup.”

 

Rose pressed her lips together and looked down. She remembered Dr. Gustov saying something about the strand and how it needed to be activated. She bet her life that Bad Wolf accomplished that. Her thoughts drifted to the first night in the TARDIS after Krop Tor, when the Doctor stayed with her in her room. He knew she was still upset about what the beast said, so he tried to take her mind off of it with little stories and facts. One particular fact stood out. “TNA.”

 

Owen raised an eyebrow.

 

She shook her head, realizing that she would need to obviously explain. There were no Time Lords in this universe, after all. “It’s…my friend that I used to travel with, he was called a Time Lord. His DNA was called TNA.”

 

“And did this friend of yours by any chance have regenerative healing? Perhaps even an elongated lifespan?”

 

Rose paused at that, her heart beginning to race. She had a feeling she knew where this was going. “I-yes.” She tensed and held her breath as she waited for his next statement.

 

Owen nodded once. “Figured. You healed much faster than possible for a human. I’ve never seen anything like it.” The gleam in his eyes reminded her of Dr. Gustov, which caused her to shiver.

 

She smiled gratefully at Alec as he rubbed circled over her hand in response, then looked back to Owen. “I have a feeling there’s more.”

 

He smiled for a split second, before his face went back to an emotionless mask. “As I predicted, your friend had an elongated lifespan. Based on your test results, it seems the same effect has come upon you. We’re not sure how long you’ll live at this point, but there’s a good chance it’ll be centuries.”

 

Rose leaned her against the headboard of the bed and stared up at the ceiling, her eyes turning glassy. Her first thought was of Alec. How was she supposed to have a life with him if she would be around for so much longer? They would have to move around constantly so no one would get suspicious and she knew how much he liked it in Broadchurch. She couldn’t take him away from his whole life.

 

Her next thought was how it would affect her. When he inevitably died, she would be alone. She felt a newfound respect for the Doctor at this revelation; finally understood why he worked so hard to push her away those first couple months after seeing Sarah Jane. He was reminded of her mortality.

 

And then there was her family. She would have to watch all of them wither and die in front of her, even her little brother. Then watch his children and grandchildren die.

 

A few lone tears fell down her cheeks as she looked back at Owen. “Can it be reversed?”

 

He simply shook his head. “I’ll let you get some more rest,” he murmured, then was out the door.

 

Rose took a deep breath and turned to Alec. The concern was apparent on his face. She figured it was because he was afraid of how she was taking the news. She let out a breathy laugh to hide her nerves. “Quite a shock, innit?”

 

He offered a wane smiled and looked down at their joined hands. “You should probably sleep some more, Rose. You’ve been through a lot.”

 

She frowned when he let go of her hand and stood. “I’ll see you later?” Her eyes followed him, full of hope and slight fear. Was this all too much for him? She couldn’t blame him if that were true.

 

He must have noticed the look in her eyes because he leaned over and gave her a lingering kiss. “Of course. Your parents were kind enough to offer me hospitality.” He stood back to his full height and rubbed the back of his neck with a slight smirk. “Your mother was quite…dramatic when she saw me.”

 

Rose let out a small laugh. “Yeah. Didn’t really tell her much about you. I can only imagine.”

 

“Pete said I should be happy I haven’t had to endure one of her slaps.”

 

She laughed more heartily at this. “Oh, no doubt.”

 

Her laughter was infectious, and soon he was in the same boat. They sighed together as they got control of themselves. He stroked her cheek softly. “I’ll see you in a bit.”

 

She nodded and he left, glancing back once. It wasn’t too long before she had dosed off.

 

oOo

 

The next time Rose woke up, she was greeted by Mickey leaning against the door frame. She gave him a half-hearted wave.

 

He offered a tight smile in return. “So you heard?”

 

She knew he was talking about her condition and nodded. “Bit of a shock, but I’m dealing.”

 

They were silent for a moment, and then Mickey sat in the chair previously occupied by Alec. “The mission I went on…I think it was caused by Bad Wolf.”

 

She raised an eyebrow, motioning for him to continue.

 

He glanced at her, then out the doorway. “It’s a rip in the fabric of time. Small enough to close itself in about a week, but large enough for dimension hopping.” He looked at her pointedly when he voiced the last two words.

 

She bit her lip. Her thoughts had already traversed to the Doctor when she was told the news. What she did as Bad Wolf had always centered around the Doctor, but with good intentions. She couldn’t ignore the fact that they now had close to matching life spans and it was rather obvious what her alter ego had intended.

 

She rubbed a hand down her face, feeling defeated. She looked to Mickey, feeling helpless and spoke softly, “What should I do?”

 

Compassion was written across his face as he gripped her shoulder. “I can’t make that call for you. But, really think about this. The whole reason the Doctor never moved forward with you was because of the whole mortality thing, yeah?”

 

She shrugged.

 

He tilted his head and looked at gave her a look. “You know it’s true. I traveled with you both for those couple o’ months. You both weren’t exactly good at maskin’ it. And I know you still love him.” He managed to keep the bitterness out of his tone.

 

Rose looked straight ahead, lost in thought. “But I love Alec, too.”

 

Mickey looked down and nodded. “I know, Rose, trust me. And, despite our differences, it’s obvious that he loves you too. It’s just the choice you have to make; doesn’t mean its fair.”

 

She scratched her head and then leaned it against her palm, unshed tears causing her eyes to glisten. “I don’t know what to do.” Her voice was thick with emotion.

 

“This is something you need to decide on your own.” He took a deep breath and stood up. “Just…don’t think about the now as much as the centuries to come.”

 

She stared at him silently and then nodded.


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last chapter is finally here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've made it to the end! 
> 
> As always, a great big thank you to my beta Diomede! I could probably credit her to half of the ideas in this story.

Alec was sitting on a bench in a nearby park, his thoughts racing. He had managed to hear a bit of what the mission was about, enough to understand what it could mean. His now healthy heart ached at the thought of losing the best thing in his life.

 

He looked up to watch passersby and tried to clear his head, but to no avail. He knew what would be best for her; to find the man that had been lost to her. The selfish part of him wanted to beg her to stay, let them have his forever, but the part that swelled with unabashed love knew that was not fair. How could he ask her to suffer through centuries of loneliness for a few decades?

 

He pulled out his phone and dialed Ellie’s number.

 

“ _Alec? Is Rose all right?_ ”

 

He nodded, before realizing she couldn’t see. “Ah, yeah. Woke up just a bit ago.”

 

Her tone turned relieved. “ _Oh thank goodness! Was worried; that poor girl has been through so much these past few days. Calling to tell me the good news?_ ”

 

He stayed silent for a couple beats. “Not…not exactly. I know this isn’t exactly…well, I just-I need someone to talk to. About something.”

 

“ _...Go on._ ”

 

He filled her in on all that he had heard, subtly letting in on his worries. He told her about how Pete gave him a debriefing on the rip between universes and the project that had been worked on before Rose left for Broadchurch, and that now there is a very good possibility that dimension travel was now possible.

 

She seemed to catch on to his train of thought, because her voice had a smidge of understanding. “ _Oh, Alec. I’m so sorry; I know how much she means to you. But maybe you’re getting ahead of yourself? You tend to be a little masochistic, yeah?_ ”

 

He bit his lip and groaned. “That’s the thing. You would think I was working myself up, but I saw her expression when the doctor told her. And I can’t just force her to stay because of my own damn feelings.” He sighed in disgust for himself. “I know she still loves him. She mentions him quite a bit.”

 

Ellie was about to respond, but he cut her off. “And yes, I know she loves me, but this man has the ability to give her what I can’t, and that’s forever.”

 

The line was silent, and then Ellie said quietly, “ _I’m sorry_.”

 

oOo

 

After Mickey had left, Rose decided it was time to move about. She was unsteady on her feet when she first stepped out of the bed and she assessed that she had been in the bed for at least a couple days. Owen had unhooked all equipment from her body, so she was able to go freely.

 

When she made it into the bathroom and was relieved when she saw a neatly folded pile of clothing. She pulled on the dark blue skinny jeans and silk button up shirt and then slipped on the ballet flats on the floor right below.

 

She relieved herself and brushed her teeth before heading out of the room. She ignored the stares as she made her way to Pete’s office.

 

When she knocked on the doorframe, he looked up in surprise. “Rose. I wasn’t expecting you to be up just yet.”

 

She shrugged and walked inside, taking a seat on one of the plush velvet chairs in the corner. “Apparently regenerative healing will do that to a girl.”

 

He nodded to let her know he was caught up with her condition. “Quite a shock you’ve endured. And then all of this…I’m so sorry, Rose. It has got to be difficult to cope with.”

 

She smiled at him. “Comes with the job, yeah?”

 

He sighed and turned from his work to look her head on. “Not like this. Your mother is beside herself with worry.”

 

Rose nodded, already knowing this. “I’ll head home.” Before Pete could suggest it, she said, “I’ll call a cab. Or someone can take me back.”

 

He nodded and picked up his desk phone. “I’ll call someone to take you. She’ll be thrilled that you’re back and in shape. Tony, too.” His eyes were on the receiver when he continued, “And of course Alec. That man really cares about you. He should be back at the house, as far as I know.”

 

She stood back up, smoothing down her top. “I’ll go wait at the front. Maybe convince mum to cook up some shepherd’s pie. You know, me being ill and all.” She winked at Pete, making his chuckle.

 

“You do that.” He quickly called out to Rose before she could get to the door. “Don’t you want to know what happened to the base?”

 

Her eyes widened momentarily. “Oh, right, yeah. Sorry, s’like I forgot.” She shook her head with a self-deprecating smile.

 

He smiled and leaned back in his chair. “Understandable. We’re not sure how many people were working there, but we’ve got about a round lot detained.” He regarded her carefully. “All equipment had malfunctioned on its own, though. Something called the Bad Wolf Virus.”

 

She blinked, memories rushing forward of those same words at her original Torchwood, but made no other signs of recognition. “Well, that’s good. And the base itself?”

 

“All cleared up and filled. Should be like it never existed.”

 

oOo

 

Rose and Alec spent the next couple days in London so she could spend time with her family. When she had first gone back to the mansion, her mother was on her instantly, full of tears and love.

 

Surprisingly, Alec was able to assimilate easily. It made her feel even worse, knowing that her mind was already made up in what she would do. They kept conversation light, neither willing to delve into the white elephant looming over them day in and day out. After all, ignorance was bliss.

 

The day that they were leaving to head back to Broadchurch, she pulled her mother into her room, claiming they needed to talk.

 

Jackie sat down on the bed, staring at her daughter in confusion. “What’s this about then?”

 

Rose took a deep breath and walked over to her mother, sitting down next to her. She took Jackie’s hands in her own, fixing her with a soft look. “I know I haven’t told you much these past days. Things…they’ve changed. I’ve changed.”

 

Jackie ran her thumb over the apple of Rose’s cheek and smiled. “Of course you have, Rose. These things do that to a person.”

 

Rose shook her head and looked down. “No mum, I don’t mean mentally – though that’s true, too. My body, it’s changed. The whole Bad Wolf thing…” She bit her lip and looked back up. “Mum, I don’t age. At least not as quickly as before.”

 

Jackie stared at her, trying to comprehend this new information. “You mean like _him_?”

 

Rose shrugged. “I dunno. Maybe. I just know that it could be centuries before any of that. And before you ask, there’s no way to change me back.”

 

Jackie raised a hand to her mouth and continued to stare. “Oh, sweetheart.” She pulled Rose in for a tight hug. “We’ll figure this out, I promise.”

 

Rose sniffled, fighting off tears. She pulled away and held Jackie at a distance. “There’s more. Apparently when I went all…” she waved her hand around, “I made a way for me to get back to the other universe.” She knew that her next words would break her mother’s heart and she could no longer keep the tears at bay. “I have to go back. If I go back to him I won’t be alone.”

 

Jackie had tears of her own falling and she shook her head. “But you can’t leave! Your family is here. He would be all you have over there, Rose. You can’t.”

 

Rose shook her head and stood, then began to pace. “But what about after you’re all gone? What will I have?” Her face crumpled. “Mum, I need to. Not only for me, but for him, too. Neither of us will have to be alone.”

 

Jackie stood and pulled Rose to her, hugging her tightly once again. “I know. Doesn’t mean I want you to go. You’re my baby girl.”

 

“I know mum, I know. But I have to do this.” She pulled away. “You don’t want me to be alone, do you?” She knew it was a bit insensitive, but she needed her mother to understand.

 

Jackie shook her head. “Of course not.” She blew out a breath to calm herself. “Promise you’ll come back before you leave?”

 

Rose smiled and nodded. “Of course I will. Not leavin’ without a goodbye. I’m just going to spend a couple days with Alec and then I’ll be back.”

 

After a few more tearful exchanges, they went downstairs for a nice family dinner. It was after they put Tony to bed that Alec and Rose headed out to go back to Broadchurch.

 

The first few miles were spent in a slightly awkward silence. Rose was the first to break it. “Sure you’ll be able to stay up for this drive, old man?”

 

Alec glanced at her and smirked. “Oh, I’m more than capable. I’m not that old, you know.”

 

She smiled and grabbed the hand that was near the gear shift. “You’ve exhibited that quite well,” she said with a sultry tone.

 

Alec swallowed and squeezed her hand. “You staying at my place tonight or going back to the hotel?”

 

“Probably just pack everything up at the hotel first, and then go to your place?”

 

He nodded, trying to ignore the connotations of her clearing her things. “I’ll help you pack up. Then we can drive together to my house.” He was fairly sure she wouldn’t end up needing her car for the rest of her time here. They hadn’t talked about it, but it was the most likely choice. He wouldn’t bring it up until she did, though.

 

Idle chit chat filled up the rest of the trip and soon they were pulling into the hotel. The packing was done in silence, and Alec waited in the car as she checked out. He was so lost in thought that he startled when the passenger door opened.

 

She smiled. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you. Ready?”

 

He nodded and waited for her to put on her seatbelt, then drove the short distance to his place.

 

Rose only bothered to pull out the suitcase with her clothing and toiletries. There was no need to take in the Torchwood equipment. Once in the house, she took the suitcase up to Alec’s room, dropping it and her purse near his dresser. She hurried back down the stairs.

 

She found Alec in his living room, staring into the blazing fire he had started. She knew this was the time where she had to tell him her plans. She couldn’t just drop him right before she left, leaving him painfully shocked. By his blank expression, she had a feeling he knew what was coming. 

 

She sat down next to him and drew her legs up. She brought her arms around her shins and stared at him.

 

He looked back, searching her face. Finally, he sighed in resignation. “Okay.”

 

She bit her lip and reached a hand out to him. He allowed her to hold onto him tightly and he wrapped his own arms around her. “I’m sorry. I just have to. It’s really the only option.”

 

Alec’s nose burned as tears welled up in his eyes. He mouthed a silent ‘yeah’ and kissed the top of her head.

 

Rose took in a shaky breath and looked up at him, fresh tear tracks staining her cheeks. “This has nothing to do with you, please know that. I-I _love_ you. I don’t want to leave you.”

 

“Then don’t.” The words escaped him before he had time to think, full of desperation. He flinched after, feeling horrible for asking such a thing.

 

Rose looked down, her chin quivering. “I can’t. I just can’t. It’ll hurt too much.” Her voice was low as she spoke and she couldn’t look at him, feeling ashamed.

 

Alec could tell that she was giving into self-blame and he hated himself for it. He tilted her chin up to look her in the eyes. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I could never force you spend eternity alone just because I’m selfish.”

 

She shook her head vehemently and kissed him roughly. She pulled away just so that her lips were barely touching his. “You are not selfish, Alec. You are wonderful. Remember that.” She kissed him again and with so much force that he fell back onto the couch, her on top of him.

 

They made love on the couch and then again in his bed. It was slow and languid, full of tenderness and admiration while worshipping and memorizing every taste and touch; then fast and rough, mirroring their desperation and pure carnal need.  

 

They lay in bed together after, Alec dragging his fingers up and down her arm. She nuzzled his chest, trying to memorize his scent.

 

The silence was broken by Rose. “I love you.”

 

Alec glanced down at her, a sad smile on his face. “Quite right, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there we have it. Thanks to everyone that enjoyed my story!
> 
> P.S. The sequel will most likely show up sometime this week. It will be DoctorxRose with mentions of Alec. Also, it will be much darker. If you're interested, look out for that!


End file.
